Generali buys US asset manager Conning under deal with Cathay Life

MILAN :Italian insurer Generali said its asset management arm had agreed to buy Connecticut-based rival Conning Holdings as part of a partnership with Cathay Life, a unit of Taiwan’s Cathay Financial Holding.

Generali said Cathay Life would become a minority shareholder in Generali Investments Holding, which comprises the majority of the group’s asset management activities.

In exchange for contributing Conning Holding, Cathay Life will own 16.75 per cent of Generali Investments Holding.

Generali and Cathay Life will also enter an asset management agreement for at least 10 years, it said.

Conning, which will retain its current management team led by CEO Woody Bradford, has around $157 billion in assets under management, serving insurance and institutional clients in the United States and Asia.

Under its latest strategic plan, Generali aims to expand its asset management activities.