Insia, the leading insurance distributor in Czech Republic and Slovakia, with some market presence in Romania, founded in 1992 by Ivan Špirakus, managing the network of 1.300 partners with 450 branches and intermediated premiums of approximately EUR 145 mln, was acquired by Unilink Group.
We remind you that in January 2021, the Bulgarian company "I & G Insurance Brokers" OOD attracted the largest Polish investor Unilink Group and thus successfully launched an international expansion to build the widest insurance distribution network in the Central and Eastern region Europe, as at the end of 2021 Unilink Group acquired Safety Broker, the largest insurance broker in Romania, also operating in Moldova.
Unilink is the market leader in Poland, Bulgaria, Romania and Moldova with a network of 14,000 agents and almost 2.000 branches, and 2022 premiums approximating EUR 1bn. Investment in Insia will consolidate Unilink position of the largest insurance distributor in the Region of Central and Eastern Europe, with the presence in 6 countries.
By taking over 80% of Insia shares from Marsh, Unilink Group becomes the majority shareholder of the Company. After the completion of the transaction, the management of Insia will continue to be lead by Mr. Ivan Spirakus- Founder, CEO and minority shareholder of the Company.
The transaction strengthened Unilink as the leader on the insurance market in Central and Eastern Europe. Unilink aims is to achieve EUR 1 bn in premiums by the end of 2022.
“I am proud and glad that Insia has joined Unilink Group. We have been following Insia's achievements in the Czech and Slovak markets with great appreciation. The insurance market in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, although smaller in size is substantially more developed than in Poland. The model of exclusive partners dominates here. In Poland, we are dealing with more complex models, which make distribution management much harder. Acquisitions are an integral part of Unilink DNA, so far we have conducted over 60 acquisitions and have a very strong pipeline in both our markets and the new ones. We are focusing on achieving pragmatic synergies between our businesses and markets, mainly via transfer of know-how, and we are very respectful of differences between the markets. There is no single recipe for all the markets, while there is so much to share between the market leaders within CEE Region! We have developed unique expertise in development of various distribution channels, support for agents, IT, consumer brand, partnerships with key insurance carriers. In this respect we are very much looking forward to benefiting from Insia experiences in the area of the franchise model and IT systems. The Czech and Slovak markets are very interesting with insurance penetration twice larger than in our home market in Poland. This shows great potential."- said Igor Rusinowski, chairman of the board of Unilink SA.
“INSIA just celebrated 30 years on the market. I am grateful for 11 years of partnership with Marsh and we will continue with our excellent mutual business co-operation. Now we are starting to write a new chapter in history of INSIA. I see a huge potential through the exchange of know-how and experiences with Unilink Group companies and other co-founders, as our operating model is almost the same. I believe that with support of Unlink we will start a rapid growth both organically and by acquisitions and attract new partners to our network. Unilink will also bring MGA to our markets with new products for our customers”- adds Ivan Špirakus, the founding shareholder and CEO of INSIA.