Oligopoly brief: Allianz
German Allianz is one of the world's biggest insurers. Because most insurance companies combine finance with insurance, and because each company specializes in some, but not all, kinds of insurance (life, property, health, casualty, etc.), it's not easy to compare them, but Allianz is definitely the leader in sales (though lately far from it in profit and market capitalization), with fully multinational scope, with over 100 subsidiaries. It is #1 worldwide in property and casualty insurance.
As a financial institution, in light of its recent acquisition of Dresdner Bank, it is #4 in the world. The company handles asset management for both institutions and individuals, risk consulting, and public investment funds.
Allianz, like most big multinational companies, has been built up by a series of mergers and acquisitions, along with organic growth. It was founded in Berlin in 1890, and set up its first international branch office (in London) in 1893. After World War II, the company moved to Munich (its Berlin headquarters had been bombed). It slowly expanded its business and in the 1980s started snapping up insurance companies in England, Italy, and France. In 1990, it acquired the state insurance company of the former East Germany.
A few of the more recent acquisitions include:
- 1997 Assurances Generales de France
- 1999 First Life Insurance (South Korea)
- 2000 Asset management company PIMCO Advisors (US)
- 2001 German Dresdner Bank (Germany)
- 2001 Nicholas-Applegate, an asset management company (US)
Allianz is reportedly just starting to dig out from the disastrous Dresdner Bank acquisition, one that is losing well over a billion dollars a year. The company's hidden problems became clear only after the acquisition, and it came at a time, after terrorist attacks and some disastrous natural occurrences, when Allianz's property and casualty divisions were not doing so well either. Add to that a heavy investment in faltering German industries. Dresdner Bank's problems were based on bad loans, and the Allianz has suffered as it has written off the worst of them and tries to restructure some of the others.
Under new leadership, the company has recently gone into the black this year, but many of its divisions (banking, asset management, health) are still losing money. The biggest plus came from the company's selling of some of its interest in German personal care products company Beiersdorf (Nivea).
Allianz continues to expand its operations in China and in Eastern Europe. It plans to sell more of its equity holdings in other companies and to keep cutting costs and reorganizing its far-flung operations.
Principal divisions of Allianz
| Division |
Country |
Specialty |
| Allianz Versicherung AG |
Germany |
Property/casualty |
| Allianz Marine & Aviation |
Worldwide |
Property/casualty |
| Allianz Global Risk |
Worldwide |
Industrial |
| Allianz Privatkrankenversicherung |
Germany |
Health |
| Allianz Leben |
Germany |
Life |
| Advance Bank |
Germany |
Bank |
| Dresdener Bank |
Germany |
Bank |
| Bankhaus Reuschel |
Germany |
Bank |
| AllianzDresdner Asset Management |
Germany |
Asset management |
| Assurances Generales de France |
France |
Indsurance |
| Banque AGF |
France |
Bank |
| Euler & Hermes |
Worldwide |
Credit insurance |
| Riunione Adriatica di Sicurita |
Italy |
Insurance |
| Rasbank |
Italy |
Bank |
| Allianz Supalpina |
Italy |
Insurance |
| Allianz Cornhill Insurance |
UK |
Insurance |
| RetPlan Health Care Ltd. |
UK |
Health |
| Allianz Risk Transfer |
Switzerland |
Reinsurance |
| ELVIA Reisenversicherung |
Switzerland |
Travel insurance |
| ELMONDA |
Worldwide |
Travel insurance |
| Fireman's Fund |
US |
Property/casualty |
| Allianz Life Insurance |
US |
Life |
| Pacific Investment Management (PIMCO) |
US |
Asset management |
| Oppenheimer Capital |
US |
Asset management |
| Nicholas-Applegate |
US |
Asset management |
| Arab International Insurance |
Egypt |
Insurance |
| Entenial |
France |
Property and mortgage |
| Allianz Compania de Seguros |
Spain |
Insurance |
"Insurance" in the above table denotes a mix of property, casualty, life and health.
Allianz also has major operations in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Colombia, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Slovakia, and Taiwan
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