Zurich Insurance Group has reopened negotiations to sell its German life insurance portfolio following the collapse of an initial agreement with Viridium Holding last year. 

Chief financial officer Claudia Cordioli discussed the renewed efforts during an interview with Bloomberg TV.  

The previous attempt to sell the portfolio, valued at around $20bn, was halted when Viridium withdrew due to complications concerning its ownership structure. 

Cordioli said: “We are still strategically interested in a sale of the book and we are evaluating options and talking to a number of players.  

“There are other players that are also very interested potentially in the Zurich book.” 

Several large insurers have been looking to reduce exposure to older insurance books, often through sales to consolidators supported by private equity, as a means of adjusting their financial positions in a higher interest rate environment, the report noted.   

Cordioli stated: “You need to make sure that who invests in this business has an alignment of interest with the policyholders, which is front and centre in the minds of the regulator and players like Zurich alike.” 

Zurich CEO Mario Greco has previously expressed concerns about growing private equity involvement in the sector.  

Cordioli added: “Anyone taking over assets from insurers needs to be in it for the long term.” 

In its latest financial update for the period ending 30 September, Zurich reported that gross written premiums (GWP) in its property and casualty (P&C) segment increased by 8% to $38.9bn.  

Growth was attributed mainly to gains in the Retail division and ongoing positive results in Commercial Insurance. 

The group’s Life Insurance business reported an 11% increase in gross premiums, reaching $26.7bn. Farmers Exchanges saw GWP rise by 5% to $22.6bn.