The majority shareholder of Romanian insurer Astra blames KPMG for failed capital increase

The Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF) and KPMG, local insurer Astra Asigurari’s special administrator, did everything to block a capital boost for Astra, instead of trying to attract an investor, said Dan Adamescu, Astra’s majority shareholder. ASF withdrew Astra’s functioning license and asked for the company’s bankruptcy on Wednesday, August 26, after the financial recovery program failed to solve Astra’s solvency issues. There were investors who were interested in the insurer, but KPMG did everything possible to block the sale, through the financial figures it showed the investors, Adamescu said. ASF and KPMG also opposed the taking over of AXA Life Insurance by Astra, because “they knew that if Astra took over AXA, it would recover and go great,” he added, reports local Hotnews.ro. The Financial Supervisory Authority decided earlier this week that Astra Asigurari must go bankrupt, after it failed to attract new capital worth RON 425 million (some EUR 95 million), from existing shareholders and other institutional investors, for its financial recovery plan. ASF said that Astra’s shareholders were to blame for the failed capital increase. Earlier this week, Adamescu said that he planned to bring the EUR 95 million extra capital that the insurer needed to continue its activity, as requested by the ASF, but under certain conditions. One of his conditions was the removal of KPMG as the insurer’s special administrator. editor@romania-insider.com