Gulf Union seeks anti-trust approval for merger with Al Ahlia

Gulf Union Cooperative Insurance Co. on Wednesday has filed a request to the Saudi General Authority for Competition (GAC) to approve its planned acquisition of Al Ahlia for Cooperative Insurance Co., the authority said in a statement.

The authority called on the public and other stakeholders to submit thoughts on the planned merger within 15 days.

Both firms are operating in general insurance, medical insurance and protection and savings schemes, and the resulting business concentration needs to be cleared by the anti-trust authority.

The boards of both insurers signed the merger agreement on May 10, under which Gulf Union will acquire the entire share capital of Al Ahlia, by issuing nine million new shares to Al Ahlia’s shareholders.

The Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA), which oversees the Kingdom’s insurance sector, has recently approved the potential merger between the two companies.