In March 2022, Vienna Insurance Group acquired the Hungarian companies owned by Dutch group Aegon. Holding company VIG Magyarország Befektetesi Zrt. was then established to manage the Hungarian VIG companies, in which Corvinus International Investments Zrt., an investment management company of the Hungarian state, holds a 45% stake. Once the transaction is completed,VIG’s stake in the Holding will increase from 55% to 90%. Corvinus will continue to keep a 10% stake in the Hungarian holding company. Subject to approval by the Hungarian National Bank, the transaction is expected to close in late November 2023.

The Wolf Theiss Team was led by Horst Ebhardt (partner, corporate / M&A) and János Tóth (partner, corporate / M&A) and further consisted of Melinda Pelikán (counsel, banking & finance), Lukas Ploesch (senior associate, corporate / M&A), Kinga Kajcsos (associate, corporate / M&A), László Lovas (associate, corporate / M&A).

"It was a privilege to have had the opportunity to work in this strategically important transaction with our long-term client, VIG," says Horst Ebhardt.

"This was a complex cross-border transaction. Our cross border and sector expertise proved to be essential in facilitating this transaction," adds János Tóth.

VIG has been operating in Hungary since 1996 and is the market leader with a market share of more than 19%. Its two insurance companies, Alfa and Union, generated a premium volume of EUR 403 million in the first half of 2023.