Brazilian reinsurance companies Austral Re and Terra Brasis have commenced their operations as a combined entity following a merger between the two firms.
The new company, whose brand is still under development, has offices in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and Bogota.
Austral Re and Terra Brasis claim that the combined operation now constitutes the largest reinsurer in Brazil, with nearly R $2 billion (US $475) of assets and net worth of almost R $400 million (US $95 million).
The international operation, with focus on Latin America, will form the main strategic pillar for the new company, the parties said.
Currently, foreign business represents nearly 18% of the total portfolio of the reinsurer, and is expected to strengthen its competitive positioning with the improvement of the geographic and product coverage.
“The post-merger goal is to leverage the business of our clients and partners by means of tailored and creative solutions to mitigate risks, with an agile and flexible service,” Bruno Freire, CEO of the new reinsurer.
“Operational, administrative, economic and financial synergy and retrocession purchase generate scaled gains, leading the company from its very beginning to be better positioned to compete in strategic markets,” he explained.
“We want to explore the market and have spared no efforts to seek solutions for each and every challenge faced by our clients.”
Rodrigo Botti, CFO of the company, also commented “There are possibilities both in the most traditional business lines and those yet to be developed or non-existent in our market.”
The combined operation is controlled by Vinci Partners, whose partners are the Brasil Plural group and International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, which already has equity interest in both companies.
The association does not interfere in the composition of Austral Seguradora, which is controlled by Vinci Partners.
