Talanx Buys KBC’s Polish Warta Unit for 770 Million Euros

Talanx AG bought Poland’s Towarzystwo Ubezpieczen i Reasekuracji Warta SA from KBC Group NV for 770 million euros ($999 million), beating rivals in a bid to expand in eastern Europe’s largest insurance market.

When the purchase is completed in the second half of 2012, Talanx’s Japanese partner Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co. will take over 30 percent of Warta, Poland’s second-largest insurer, the Hanover, Germany-based firm said in a statement today.