Prima Assicurazioni, Axa in pole for takeover

The share reorganisation of Prima Assicurazioni is nearing completion and it would be the French multinational Axa (assisted by Deutsche Bank) in pole position for the acquisition. In the running, but more defiladed, would instead be the German Allianz (flanked by Mediobanca). At stake is the control of Prima Assicurazioni, a game that could be worth a total of more than EUR 1.5 billion. For several months now, a competitive process has been underway in which major European insurance companies have shown interest.

Currently, the largest shareholder of Prima Assicurazioni is entrepreneur Teodoro D'Ambrosio, one of the group's founders, who owns 48% of the company's shares. An important share of Prima (around 8%) is also held by top management. Among the shareholders are also large private equity funds and merchant banks, such as the American players Blackstone and Goldman Sachs, which hold 27% and 15% respectively. The private equity fund Carlyle owns another approximately 2 per cent.

This is not the first time that shareholders are considering the sale of Prima Assicurazioni. Already at the end of 2023 an exit from the Italian insurtech was being considered, but in that case the process had largely attracted financial investors and not large insurance companies. On the table, moreover, was a large minority stake (30-40% was mentioned) and not control. At the end of last year, reasoning resumed on a divestment of the current shareholders, also in light of the great growth shown in the last year by the company, which specialises in car and motorbike insurance. The path is not stopping: 2023 ended with premium income of EUR 880 million and 3.2 million customers.

Even better was 2024, which closed with EUR 1.3 billion in premiums, a growth of 47 per cent, and an operating result that rose to EUR 104 million. The market share of the insurtech, led by CEO George Ottathycal, is now approaching 10 per cent and in 2025 the Prima group aims to collect premiums of around EUR 1.6 billion, also driven by foreign markets that are becoming increasingly relevant. By the end of 2027, the business plan predicts that about a quarter of the policies will be produced outside Italy.