Athene breaches German market

Athene, the Bermuda-based insurance holding company, will acquire the German subsidiary companies of Delta Lloyd, Delta Lloyd Deutschland (DLD) and its subsidiaries.

DLD is based in Wiesbaden, Germany, and provides retirement savings products to the German market. It had assets of approximately €4.3 billion ($5.1 billion) as of September 30, 2014.

After the transaction closes, which is expected in the third quarter of 2015, DLD will operate under the Athene name.

Athene will retain DLD’s employee base and management team and utilise its existing location in Wiesbaden as the headquarters of Athene’s German operations.

The company also plans to add positions there to support its German business strategy. Athene will operate DLD within DLD’s current business model, which has not been selling new business since 2010, and will continue to service its existing customers.

“We see significant net investment spread opportunities with DLD and believe our core operating principles of policyholder protection, risk management and excellence in asset management match up well with the needs of the German life insurance industry,” said James Belardi, chief executive officer of Athene. “The purchase of DLD provides Athene with an excellent entry point into the German marketplace.”