Cleary Gottlieb represented global insurer and financial services provider NN Group (NN) in the sale by its subsidiary NN Insurance Belgium (NN Belgium) of a closed book of life retail insurances, representing approximatively €3.3 billion of assets and liabilities, to Athora Belgium (Athora).
The transaction provides Solvency II capital relief to NN and further simplifies NN Belgium’s IT structure, enabling it to focus on executing its strategy to further grow its protection and pension business and build on its strong distribution network in the Belgian market.
The transaction was announced on October 8, 2021, and closed early October 2022, after regulatory approvals had been obtained.
NN, previously known as ING Insurance, was formed as a result of the separation of ING Group’s banking and insurance businesses following the 2008 financial crisis. It is active in 19 countries, with a strong presence in a number of European countries and Japan. With 15,000 employees, NN provides retirement services, pensions, insurance, investments, and banking to approximately 18 million customers. NN Group includes Nationale-Nederlanden, NN, NN Investment Partners, ABN AMRO Insurance, Movir, AZL, BeFrank, and OHRA.
Founded in 2014 by global private equity sponsor Apollo, Athora is a specialized insurance and reinsurance group fully focused on the European market, with operational subsidiaries in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, and Bermuda. It has €79 billion of assets under administration, approximately 2.3 million policyholders in Europe, and about 2,300 employees.
For more information, please see the press release here.