As seen at the New York Times:
QBE Insurance Group, Australia’s largest property and casualty insurer, has agreed to buy the United States arm of Winterthur for $1.16 billion, its biggest purchase and second American acquisition in three weeks.
The deal will add $1.45 billion in annual sales to QBE, which is based in Sydney, the company said yesterday. Winterthur U.S. Holdings, based in Wisconsin, is owned by AXA of France and trades under the General Casualty and Uniguard brands and sells policies in 33 states.
QBE’s chief executive, Frank O’Halloran, whose company gets 80 percent of its profit outside Australia, is acquiring insurers overseas as rivalry crimps prices at home. He bought Praetorian Financial Group of New York last month, more than doubling sales in the United States.