Wiener Stadtische acquires 95% of Royal Polska

"We signed an agreement on the purchase of 95% of its shares. For the remaining 5% we have a call option valid for three years," said Franz Fuchs, the head of Grupa Compensa. Royal Polska incurred losses amounting to zł.30 million in 2002 and 2003 but managed to break even in 2004. It now holds 21st position among domestic life-insurance companies, four places below Compensa TUnŻ. The Austrians do not intend to merge Compensa and Royal Polska but will keep the two brands separate. "Royal Polska has experience in cooperation with banks, which Compensa lacks. Besides, the company's unit-linked products are considerably better than ours. It is currently the main driver of the market," said Fuchs. Thanks to the takeover, Wiener Stadtische will increase its share in the domestic life-insurance market from one to 1.3%. It is possible that the Austrians will decide on further takeovers. "We still see potential targets on the market and we are still ready to invest in new companies," said Fuchs. (Puls Biznesu, pp. 1,5) E.B.