Maputo, December 31st 2021 - Fidelidade reinforced its international
expansion strategy through the acquisition of 70% of the capital of Seguradora
Internacional Moçambique, S.A. ("SIM"), which operates under the
brand Ímpar. Ímpar is a Mozambican brand with strong tradition, roots and
implementation in the market.The operation to acquire 70% of
SIM will allow Fidelidade to consolidate and strengthen its presence in the
Mozambican market, in the Life and Non-Life branches, positioning itself, with
this acquisition, as one of the three leading Insurers in the market, according
to data from the Insurance Supervision Institute of Mozambique (ISSM), for the
year 2020.
The Board of Directors will be
chaired by Mr. Manuel Alfredo Gamito, with Mr. Rui Oliveira and Mr. Carlos
Leitão as vice-chairmen.
For
Rogério Campos Henriques, CEO of Fidelidade Group: "With this operation,
Fidelidade Group will now operate in the Mozambican market with the brands
Fidelidade and Ímpar and we will have a range of brand options that ensure greater
flexibility to meet the needs of customers in Mozambique, fulfilling the Group's
omnichannel strategy. We are sure that the partnership and synergies
generated by this acquisition, which bring together the Mozambican roots and
tradition of Ímpar, with the capacity, experience and know-how of Fidelidade,
will be a recipe for success. "
After completion of this
transaction, the participation of other shareholders will be as follows:
Millennium BIM 22%; Other Minorities 8%. In addition to the acquisition of 70%
of SIM's share capital, Fidelidade has an option that allows it to subsequently
acquire an additional stake of 12%.
Manuel Gamito, Chairman of the
Board of Directors of Seguradora Internacional de Moçambique, explains the nature
of this investment: "This transaction responds to the strategy of more
solid repositioning and growth of the insurance activity. This strategy is in
the commitment defined by Fidelidade that intends to consolidate and strengthen
its position in the Mozambican market, allowing it to extend its current offer
and expand its presence in the national territory, in a permanent search for
the improvement of products and services provided to the Mozambican population.
"
SIM will operate using the brands:
Fidelidade, Ímpar and Millennium Seguros.
The partnership with Millennium
BIM, the largest Mozambican private bank, will continue to be worked on and
strengthened, with Millennium BIM continuing to distribute SIM insurance
exclusively through the Millennium Seguros brand.
After the conclusion of the
process of transferring insurance portfolios, in Mozambique the Fidelidade
group will expand its portfolio of innovative Life and Non-Life products and
services, which it will make available to around 330,000 customers resulting
from the merger of the portfolios of the two insurers. It will also have a dedicated team of about
200 people and a network of more than 100 mediators (promoters, agents and
brokers), in addition to the network of more than 200 branches that Millennium
BIM has spread throughout the country. The market share resulting from this
partnership will be 14.1% (2020 data).
For Jorge Magalhães Correia,
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Fidelidade Group, "the great
collaboration and diligence shown by the Mozambican authorities was fundamental
for the implementation of this partnership. The administration of the
Fidelidade Group, at its highest level, will have the opportunity, in the near
future, to duly mark this new stage of investment in the future of Mozambique,
by organizing a ceremony to commemorate this very important step in our
long-term commitment to the Mozambican people and economy.
Created in 1992 in Mozambique, SIM
operates in the Life and Non-Life sectors, through the Ímpar brand, with which
it is present in traditional channels, and Millennium Seguros, with which it
operates in the banking channel through Millennium BIM.
Since
2019, SIM has been rated by the prestigious US rating company AM Best, with the
Financial Strenght Rating "B" (Good) and Long-Term Issuer Credit
Rating "BB" with the assigned outlook of "Stable" credit
ratings, being the first Mozambican insurer with an internationally recognized
rating.
About Fidelidade
Founded in
1808, Fidelidade is the leading life and non-life insurer in Portugal, with a
market share of 28 percent in 2020, and is present in Angola, Cape Verde,
Mozambique, Spain, France, Macau, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay and Chile. The Fitch
rating agency classified Fidelidade with an "A stable (IFS)" and "A-stable
(IDR)" rating, one of the highest in the national corporate panorama,
highlighting the Company's high capitalisation, namely its solvency ratio and
the solidity of its investment portfolio.
Fidelidade operates based
on a defined and continued strategy of "Customer Centric Approach",
where customers effectively come first. The fact that it gives crucial
importance to the quality of the service it provides and to the comprehensive
and innovative offer it provides make Fidelidade one of the most awarded
insurers in Portugal, as well as internationally. In 2014, Fidelidade was
distinguished by the "Efma Accenture Innovation Awards", in the
"sustainable business" category, with its 'WeCare' project, which
aims to support the correct reintegration of people who were victims of serious
accidents that jeopardised their physical, economic and social reintegration.