The European Commission has approved the acquisition by Swiss Re of GE Insurance Solutions, the company confirmed today.
A Swiss Re spokeswoman did not have details of the approval, which was announced in Brussels yesterday. The deal is expected to close within weeks, she added.
Last week, the Zurich-based company said it expects to raise $3.9 billion instead of $4.7 billion in equity securities to fund its acquisition of the Kansas City-based company.
In place of the $800 million in planned equity, Swiss Re will use internally-generated cash. The expected total cost for the acquisition remains unchanged at $7.6 billion.
Swiss Re and General Electric have agreed that the portion of the purchase price payable in Swiss Re shares is to be reduced to $2.4 billion. In addition, $500 million of mandatory convertible instruments are expected to be issued to GE, resulting in total ownership in Swiss Re by GE of less than 10 percent.
The acquisition of GE announced last November will turn Swiss Re into the largest writer of reinsurance premiums in the world.
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