Tirana, June 19. The Dubai Group has expressed interest in purchasing the government-owned INSIG insurance company. Prime Minister Sali Berisha has discussed the possible sale with Soud Ba’alawy, Executive Chairman of the Dubai Group and Abdulhakeem Kamkar, CEO of Dubai Investment Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dubai Group. Representatives of the Dubai Group expressed their interest in participating in the open tender for the sale of INSIG, the state-owned insurance company. The Executive Chairman of the Dubai Group also said they are looking at the possibility of investing in the banking sector, as well.
The Albanian government is planning to put INSIG up for sale before the end of 2008. The plan includes selling 61 percent of the shares of INSIG to a strategic buyer. IFC and EBRD currently control 19.5 percent of the shares of the company. It is expected that IFC and EBRD are going to sell their shares, as well.
Third time is a charm
The open international tender to evaluate the assets of INSIG was closed on June 12. The Albanian government had planned to allocate Euro 100,000 for the evaluation. KPMG offered to assess the assets of INSIG for Euro 85,000 and won the tender. It is expected that KPMG is going to finish its assessment by the end of June. KPMG will also assess the assets of INSIG in Kosova and Macedonia.
INSIG and its
privatization
INSIG is a joint stock company formed out of the Institute of Deposits and Insurance and offers both non-life and life insurance products. INSIG was the only insurer in Albania prior to 1992, though it lost its leading market position in recent years. It is, however, a strong brand name and present throughout Albania. The company is also a leading insurer in Kosovo, where it has written motor insurance since 2000 and has recently formed a subsidiary in FYR Macedonia.
In 2002, a foreign company evaluated the assets of INSIG and declared that the company was worth U.S. $28 million. At that moment, INSIG is heavily invested in nearly U.S. $40 million worth of treasury bonds. The privatization of the company was earlier postponed, hoping for a better price.
Today, INSIG employs 250 people and it is estimated that its assets are worth U.S. $75 million.
