Viridium sale could ‘inspire’ German life consolidation market

Written by Michael Griffiths

04/04/2025

The sale of a majority stake in German life insurance consolidator, Viridium, should help to “invigorate” the German life consolidator market, according to Fitch Ratings.

A consortium comprising Allianz, BlackRock and Japan’s T&D Holdings has agreed to acquire Cinven’s 70% stake in Viridium, with completion likely in the second half of 2025.

Fitch suggested that the potential growth from the deal is “significant”, as the German life sector still has well over €100bn of closed funds that could become available for consolidation.

The credit rating agency also expects the change in Viridium’s ownership structure to revive the company’s stalled acquisition of a €20bn closed German life business from Zurich. This would be the second-largest German life consolidator deal ever with Fitch suggesting it would cement Viridium’s position as the dominant insurer in the market.

Fitch also highlighted that the consortium’s confidence in the German life consolidator market could “inspire wider confidence in the market” among investors and insurers. Viridium is the leader in Germany’s run-off market, followed by Frankfurter Leben and Athora, and the three firms manage around €75bn of closed life funds.

“The disposal of legacy books will be a growing theme in the German life sector as insurers start to find the costs of managing shrinking portfolios an increasing burden and the market for consolidators matures,” a Fitch announcement said.

“Run-off specialists can manage closed portfolios more efficiently by acquiring and integrating portfolios from several insurers to generate economies of scale, and disposals can free up capital for insurers.”

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