Zurich Financial Services AG today announced it was transferring the majority of its general insurance portfolios in Italy, Portugal and Spain to local branches of Zurich Insurance plc (ZIP) Ireland.
The company said a similar transfer is planned for Zurich's general insurance business in Germany later this year.
Zurich said the transfers were part of an ongoing group-wide effort to simplify the firm's legal structure, and assured customers that nothing would change.
Last year, the general insurance business in the UK was transferred to the ZIP UK branch, and much of the global corporate division's business written in the EU has transferred to ZIP branches since 2005.
"Upon completion of all transfers, ZIP is expected to generate revenues of about €11 billion," he said.
"For Zurich as a Swiss-based corporation, a single EU-based risk carrier with branches in the EU member states is both capital and operationally efficient. It enables us to take advantage of the EU single market and regulatory environment."
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