March 12 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria's competition regulator said it has given approval to DZI Life Insurance owned by Belgium's KBC Group to acquire full ownership of Sofia-based UBB-MetLife Life Insurance Company.
Following the acquisition, the combined market share of UBB-MetLife Life Insurance Company and DZI Life Insurance in terms of total premiums will be 21.6%, the competition regulator said in a statement on Friday.
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The acquisition will not lead to the establishment of a dominant position on the market where Allianz Bulgaria Life will remain leader with a market share of 26.3%, the regulator said.
In January, DZI Life Insurance received approval from the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) to acquire full ownership of UBB-MetLife Life Insurance Company.
In December, KBC Group said it agreed to acquire MetLife's 40% stake in their Bulgaria-registered life insurance joint venture UBB-MetLife Life Insurance Company, thus achieving full ownership of the company.
In June, as part of the acquisition of Bulgaria's United Bulgarian Bank (UBB) and Interlease by KBC, the Belgian group acquired 60% of UBB-MetLife Life Insurance Company. The life insurance products of the company are exclusively distributed via UBB's branches.
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