Bank Zachodni WBK SA and Aviva, the parent company of the Commercial Union Poland Group, have signed an agreement which envisages the joint creation of two new insurance companies which will offer their products to the bank's customers.
Bank Zachodni WBK SA and Aviva, the parent company of the Commercial Union Poland Group, have signed an agreement which envisages the joint creation of two new insurance companies which will offer their products to the bank's customers. BZWBK and Aviva are the first on the Polish market to enter into this type of cooperation model in the field of bancassurance, a model which is successfully being developed in many European countries.
In accordance with the signed agreement, both sides will hold 50% of the shares in the two insurance companies, which will be created after the required consent has been obtained from the European Commission and the Financial Supervision Commission.
The insurance companies will offer property insurance and life insurance to the bank's customers on the basis of exclusive, long-standing distribution agreements. This will mean that 1.4 million of the bank's customers in over 400 branches (existing branches and those planned for the future) will be able to take advantage of a wide and attractive range of insurance offers.
According to plans, the new insurance companies will begin operating during the third quarter of 2008.
Allied Irish Banks, the majority shareholder in Bank Zachodni WBK, and Aviva are already implementing a similar cooperation model in Ireland with significant benefits for both groups.
Commercial Union Poland and Bank Zachodni WBK have been working together since 1991. The bank holds 10% of shares in both Commercial Union Poland - Life Insurance Company SA and Commercial Union Poland - General Insurance Company SA as well as 11.1% of shares in Commercial Union Universal Pension Company BPH CU WBK SA.
Bank Zachodni WBK is the strategic partner of CU in the field of bancassurance. Current collaboration includes: cash loans and mortgage insurance, life and endowment insurance and credit card insurance.
"Bancassurance services are becoming an increasingly important part of our business. This trend will continue if we can offer our customers new products and professional services, and cooperation with the Aviva group will guarantee this. You only need look at our cooperation model with Commercial Union which has already lasted 15 years," said Mateusz Morawiecki, president of Bank Zachodni WBK SA.
"We are celebrating 15 years of CU activity in Poland. From the very beginning this has meant cooperating with BZWBK. The completion of this long-term agreement is a source of great satisfaction to me. This agreement has enabled us to significantly increase our bancassurance cooperation with benefits for both organisations through using models which have already been tested by our parent group Aviva in Spain, Italy, France, Ireland and Great Britain," said Adam Uszpolewicz, president of the CU Poland group.
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For more information:
Commercial Union
Bohdan Białorucki
Telephone: (22) 557 43 41
E-mail: public_relations@cu.com.pl
Grzegorz Mathea
Telephone: (22) 557 43 70
E-mail: grzegorz_mathea@cu.com.pl
Additional information can be found at www.cu.pl
Bank Zachodni WBK SA
Piotr Gajdziński
Telephone: (61) 856 40 17
E-mail: piotr.gajdzinski@bzwbk.pl
Additional information can be found at www.bzwbk.pl
Notes to editors:
Commercial Union Poland
The Commercial Union Poland group is part of the international Aviva group, the world's fifth and Great Britain's number one insurance organisation in terms of revenue. The Aviva group operates in 25 countries. It occupies a strong position in Great Britain, Ireland, France, Holland, Spain, Italy, Poland, the USA, Canada and Australia. It serves over 40 million customers around the world, has an annual revenue of around 41.5 billion pounds and manages assets to the value of over 364 billion pounds. Additional information: www.aviva.com/
Bank Zachodni WBK SA
Bank Zachodni WBK SA is one of the largest banks operating on the Polish market. The majority share (70.5%) belongs to Allied Irish Banks. Bank Zachodni WBK offers its customers 370 branches and 630 of its own cash machines and is one of the leaders in electronic banking and bank cards. Bank Zachodni WBK ‘s strategy focuses on the development of mortgages, cash loans, credit cards, investment funds, leasing and offers for businesses. Business customers can take advantage of five corporate banking centres located in Poland's most important cities. The bank also offers business advice, professional asset management and assistance in the field of investment banking. Bank Zachodni WBK also provides leasing, brokerage and factoring services through its subsidiary companies.