Financial regulator: Capitalization first for Romania's Astra Asigurari before AXA takeover

Romania’s Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF) said it will approve the takeover by Romanian insurer Astra Asigurari of French group AXA’s Romanian subsidiary only after Astra will be capitalized by its shareholders and will recover financially. “These are legal preconditions that any potential buyer must fulfil in order to take over another company,” the ASF explained, quoted by Mediafax. Astra was placed under financial recovery procedure by the ASFat the beginning of this year and KPMG was appointed to coordinate out the procedure, taking over responsibilities from the company’s administrative board which had been named by shareholders. Astra’s majority shareholder, The Nova Group Investments Romania (TNG), which is controlled by Romanian businessman Dan Adamescu, was counting on the takeover of AXA Life Insurance Romania to increase its capital base, as AXA is better capitalized. Astra’s shareholders must now bring a total of EUR 109 million to its capital, in several tranches, according to the reorganization plan made by KPMG. Romanian insurance firm Astra Asigurari’s headquarters up for sale by bank Romanian insurer Astra’s shareholders greenlight EUR 109 mln share capital increase editor@romania-insider.com