TOKYO (Reuters) – The president-elect of Tokio Marine Holdings Inc, Tsuyoshi Nagano, says that Japan's largest property-casualty insurer by market value will continue to aggressively pursue overseas acquisitions amid weak growth prospects at home.
Nagano, currently the company's executive vice president, was on Tuesday named the next president and CEO, replacing Shuzo Sumi.
In Sumi's six-year tenure, Tokio Marine has made overseas acquisitions a priority. In 2008, it bought U.S. insurer Philadelphia Consolidated in a $4.7 billion deal and Lloyd's of London insurer Kilna for 442 million pounds ($671 million).
Nagano said the company is hungry for more deals. "We would like to actively pursue acquisitions when there is a chance. We always keep our door open," Nagano told a news conference.
Nagano, 60, joined the company in 1975. Like most executives at Japan's blue chip companies, he is a career employee at the company, rising through the ranks including a stint at the company's Los Angles office in late 1980s.
As a senior executive, he led negotiations to buy U.S. insurer Delphi for about $2.7 billion in 2012.
Nagano's appointment is subject to shareholder approval scheduled in late June. Sumi will become chairman.
Nagano faces hefty challenges in keeping up the company's track record of successful overseas acquisitions. During Sumi's tenure, the proportion of overseas profits nearly doubled to roughly 40 percent of the company's overall profits.
Nagano said he wants to expand the company's Asian operations, especially in the life insurance business, where rising household income is expected to boost demand for life insurance products.
Teruki Morinaga, an insurance sector analyst at Fitch Ratings Japan, said the acquisitions of Philadelphia Consolidated and Kiln have set the company apart from its two home rivals.
"The challenge now is whether it will be able to buy good overseas insurance companies at reasonable prices and integrate them in the group smoothly," he said.
Faced with weak growth prospects at home, Japanese insurance companies have been looking abroad.
Sumitomo Life Insurance Co has said it is buying HSBC Holding's 18 percent stake in Vietnamese insurer Baoviet Holdings for about $340 million.
Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co Ltd is among companies shortlisted to buy a minority stake in Indonesia's Panin Life.
Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Ltd and Sumitomo Life Insurance Co Ltd are competing to buy a minority stake in Thai Life Insurance Co Ltd, in a deal said to be worth about $500 million.
($1 = 0.6586 British pounds) (Reporting by Taiga Uranaka; Editing by Jeremy Laurence)
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