A group of investors led by Singapore-based private equity firm Triple P Capital has acquired an 85% stake in MAA General Assurance Philippines Inc. (MAAGAP) from Malaysia’s MAA Group.
The investors include International Finance Corporation (IFC), Germany’s Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft MBH, Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries SA, and OP Finnfund Global Impact Fund I KY.
Triple P Capital, which invests in Southeast Asian financial services businesses, announced the acquisition in a statement on May 6.
The investment amount was not disclosed. Citing “business sensitivity”, the firm declined to provide the figure to Asia Asset Management.
IFC, the private sector arm of the World Bank, disclosed in a separate statement that it is investing as much as US$10 million into a special purpose vehicle formed for the acquisition.
According to Triple P Capital, the investor group will work closely with MAAGAP’s management team to bolster the insurer’s presence in the Philippines “and implement global best practices in corporate governance, environmental and social responsibility, risk management, and compliance”.
“The impact investor consortium is well placed to support the digitalisation and inclusive product development efforts of the company,” the firm says.
The IFC, meanwhile, says the group aims to bolster the insurer’s business by focusing on underpenetrated segments such as micro, small and medium enterprises, and retail, offering targeted fire and property, health, motor and personal accident insurance.
“Expanding the reach of non-life insurance products holds significant potential to establish robust protective measures for the Philippines’ diverse and growing population,” according to David Steel, Triple P Capital’s founding partner, and MAAGAP President and Chief Executive Officer Martin Dela Rosa.
“The growth of the sector will also be fuelled by the country’s sustained economic growth, the construction of new infrastructure projects, and an increasing demand for natural catastrophic insurance,” the duo say.
The Philippines is among countries that are most battered by natural calamities such as typhoons, floods and earthquakes, and extreme weather-related issues like heatwaves and deadly typhoons. But non-life insurance penetration rate in the country was only 0.6% of gross domestic product in 2022.
