CGD considers increasing stake in Fidelidade insurance company
The state-owned bank sold the insurance company to China's Fosun in 2014 for €1 billion, but retained a 15% stake. It is now negotiating to strengthen its position, possibly through an IPO next year.
Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) is in negotiations for a possible increase in its stake in Fidelidade, according to a source close to the process speaking to ECO. The increase could take place as part of the initial public offering (IPO) scheduled for early next year, with the bank led by Paulo Macedo potentially taking a total stake of up to 30% in the Portuguese insurance company.
The state-owned bank sold Fidelidade to the Chinese group Fosun in 2014 for €1 billion, but retained a 15% stake and a 25-year insurance distribution agreement. It has two non-executive directors on the insurer’s board: Nuno Martins and José João Guilherme, appointed last year.
CGD is now in talks to strengthen its position in the company led by Jorge Magalhães Correia and Rogério Campos Henriques. Officially, neither party has confirmed the potential deal, but ECO understands that, if the operation goes ahead, the public bank is not expected to exceed a 30% stake in the largest national insurer.
The same source explained that Caixa has no shortage of capital, as a result of the profits accumulated in recent years, and that strengthening its stake in Fidelidade would thus be a way of increasing profitability. On the other hand, it could also benefit in terms of the impact on its capital.
This process comes at a time when Fidelidade has resumed its plan to go public. The IPO is expected to take place in early 2027, with the insurer seeking a valuation of more than €3 billion, according to Bloomberg.
In other words, a 15% stake would be valued at more than €450 million, taking into account the value that Fosun is seeking to achieve for its insurer in the IPO.
According to Bloomberg, Fidelidade has been sounding out banks and investors in recent weeks to carry out the IPO, but had not yet hired advisors.
The insurer had initially targeted the IPO for 2025, but plans were delayed after it abandoned the idea of listing Luz Saúde on the stock exchange in 2024. Instead, it sold a minority stake in the hospital group to Australia’s Macquarie Group last year for around €310 million.
With more than 14,000 employees, Fidelidade is the largest insurer in Portugal, with a share of around 30% of the Portuguese market. It posted profits of €173 million in 2024, up 4% on the previous year, with gross premiums written of €6.17 billion – 70% of which in Portugal and 30% in international operations.
Directly or indirectly, the insurance company is present in Spain, France, Macau, Angola, Cape Verde and Mozambique. It also has a strong presence in South America, namely in Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Paraguay, with plans to expand into other markets in that region.
