Japanese e-commerce group Rakuten is set to acquire Tokyo-based Asahi Fire & Marine Insurance after winning a bid of 44.9 billion yen, or $412 million.
Rakuten plans to purchase Asahi’s stocks from January 30 through March 13 for an offer price of 2,664 yen per share, and 10,656 yen per preferred share.
The e-commerce group said it will use data from Asahi’s 90 million loyalty programme members to develop tailor-made insurance solutions and premiums based on predictions of customer households and spending patterns.
The E-tailer aims to expand Asahi’s products to expand policies including offering cover for vendors in Rakuten’s virtual mall, the firm’s partner travel agencies and potentially policies for providers of Airbnb-style lodgings and artificial-intelligence-equipped smart homes.
Asahi Fire & Marine offers home, auto, accident, travel and other insurance plans and holds 368.9 billion yen in assets as of the end of March 2017.
Rakuten has an enormous reach into Asian and global consumer households and significant insight and data on customer needs. Combining technology, insurance and its customer insights could create compelling opportunities to sell insurance, both at point-of-sale and as standalone products.
