Latin American acquisitions create regional hub for Zurich’s Cover-More
Zurich Insurance Group has entered into agreements to acquire 19 leading providers of traveller assistance in Latin America, to boost the growth of its Cover-More business. The acquired businesses operate under the Travel Ace and Universal Assistance brands.
Cover-More is Zurich’s specialist global travel insurance and assistance solutions business. The transaction involves 19 legal entities operating throughout Latin America, most notably in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. Under Zurich’s ownership, the acquired operations will form Cover-More’s Latin America hub. The acquired businesses will continue to use the well-established Travel Ace and Universal Assistance brands.
Cover-More chief executive officer Mike Emmett said the transaction was an opportunity to reshape travel assistance in Latin American markets by deploying Cover-More’s specialist expertise.
“Cover-More’s customer offering is underpinned by proprietary technology, a strong culture of traveller assistance and a global servicing capability. This transaction gives us immediate access to new customers and scale across Latin America, which is among the fastest-growing travel insurance and assistance markets worldwide. It will also enable us to better support our customers travelling to Latin America,” said Mr Emmett.
Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2018.
Zurich said the combined Travel Ace and Universal Assistance brands hold the leading market position in Argentina and the number two market position in Brazil. Cover-More already operates in 14 countries and has strong market positions in Australia, India and the US, where the group owns Travelex Insurance Services.
