German insurer Allianz SE has cancelled a proposed acquisition for a 51% stake in Singaporean firm Income Insurance Ltd, formerly NTUC Income, due to public opposition, reported Singaporean media Channel News Asia (CNA) on Saturday quoting a source familiar with the matter.
The S$2.2 billion acquisition proposal was ill-received owing to concerns that it would detract from a social mission to provide affordable insurance for lower-income workers.
If successful, the move would have lifted Allianz to the fourth largest composite insurer in Asia, from ninth.
Income Insurance Ltd, which has around 1.7 million customers and offers life, health, and property insurance, was founded in the 1970s to offer insurance to poorer groups of the population.
Singapore's Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said in October that the city-state would block Allianz's bid, but remained open to a new deal if its concerns could be addressed. Earlier, Singaporean Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) also raised concerns over how Income Insurance's cash pile of about S$2 billion (about RM6.6 billion) would have been handled.
Allianz SE had announced its plans in mid-July to buy a majority stake of 51% of ownership in Income Insurance for S$2.2 billion (about RM7.3 billion).
The deal seemed like a way for shareholders to cash out with substantial gains, critics said
The idea of a foreign entity owning a majority stake in Income Insurance, with which many Singaporeans have deep emotional ties, also unsettled some.
Allianz SE, serving more than 100 million customers in about 70 countries, has presence in Malaysia through publicly listed Allianz Malaysia Bhd.
