Aviva integrates Europe ops

Aviva's group chief executive, Andrew Moss, and Andrea Moneta, chief executive, Europe, this morning announced Aviva is to integrate its businesses across Europe.

Aviva has established a new pan-European management team and has started to integrate the operations of its 12 separate businesses across Europe.

Aviva will centralise its operations allowing it to build a pan-European approach to distribution, simplify its product range and shorten the time to launch new products to customers.

Pan-European model

Aviva said: “By moving to a pan-European operating model Aviva will make significant efficiency gains and build competitive advantage in the region.”

Aviva has established a single holding company for its European operations in Ireland. It will convert a number of existing subsidiary businesses in the region to branch status, where it is appropriate to do so, and subject to regulatory approval. This will deliver economic, operational and regulatory benefits to Aviva, especially with the anticipated introduction of Solvency II.

The new business will combine:

• a significant pool of assets (Europe, excluding the UK, has personal financial assets of €40 trillion and life and pensions assets of €4 trillion)
• substantial demand for insurance products (Aviva estimates life and pensions and general insurance premiums in the next five years will total €4 trillion)
• attractive demographics among Europe's 800 million strong population
• a highly fragmented market in which the top 10 insurers by market share represent only 37% of the total market.

Aviva Europe business expects to contribute to Aviva's target to double IFRS total return earnings per share by 2012.

Andrea Moneta, chief executive, Europe, said: "Aviva is taking a quantum leap in Europe with one way of operating across the region. This will improve the quality of our products, drive efficiency and create significant value for Aviva's customers and shareholders."