Primus Financial co-CEO, Wing-fai Ng, told Reuters he believes his firm will receive approval by Taiwanese regulators to purchase Nan Shan, AIG’s Asian insurance unit. “We are very confident we’ll be approved. We have no China shareholder money,” said Ng. The co-CEO added that Primus plans to take Nan Shan Life public in three years–first in Taiwan, followed by Hong Kong, and lastly, in the U.S. Some analysts doubt the deal will go through if regulators decide Primus’ Chinese investors are not committed to running the insurance company. Primus has teamed up with Hong Kong battery-maker China Strategic. Of the remaining bidders, Carlyle partnered with Taiwan’s Fubon Financial and Bain Capital partnered with Chinatrust Financial. Despite efforts, the $2 billion price tag for the company and looming union disputes could derail the bidding process entirely. Sources with direct knowledge say a price between $1.3-1.4 billion would be more competitive. Also, Ng said investing in Taiwan’s financial services “does not make sense” because it is “the least profitable in Asia.” However, Primus Financial founder and former Citi banker in Asia, Robert Morse, is believed to be interested in an Asian base in order to expand.
AIG Asian Unit Awaits Regulator Approval
Nan Shan, AIG’s Asian insurance unit, has found confident bidders willing to buy for the asking price.
August 25, 2009