OREANDA-NEWS. December 15, 2010. The EBRD is supporting the development of the Turkish insurance market with an equity investment of 51 million Turkish Liras (TL) (EUR25 million equivalent) for Fiba Sigorta, one of the leading non-life insurance companies in Turkey with a focus on retail and small business sector segments, reported the press-centre of EBRD.

With this investment the EBRD is purchasing up to 399,600,000 shares in Fiba Sigorta, accounting to a 9.99 per cent stake in the company’s capital and voting rights.

The EBRD has teamed up with Sompo Japan – the second largest non-life insurance company in Japan, – which is making its first insurance acquisition in an EBRD country of operation. Sompo Japan acquired Fiba Sigorta earlier this year.

“We are delighted to be working with Sompo Japan in Turkey by providing a cultural bridge and support. This is the Bank’s first equity investment in Turkey and the first project in the Turkish insurance sector. We seek to support a larger and deeper insurance industry to provide an increased range of insurance products and services to the household and corporate sectors, which in turn will support the long-term development of the local capital markets in Turkey,” the EBRD’s Managing Director for Financial Institutions Nick Tesseyman said.

Both parties view this partnership as a first step in developing a strategic relationship between Sompo Japan and EBRD. Sompo Japan’s network of subsidiaries and branch offices operate in 30 countries, in both developing and developed markets, across North and South America, Europe and Asia.

In Turkey the EBRD focuses on renewable and sustainable energy, developing small business in the regions, agribusiness, investments in the municipal, environmental and infrastructure sectors, as well as on privatisations. This new project has brought the EBRD’s investments to over EUR 550 million in over 20 projects, with a total project value of around  EUR 1 billion since the beginning of its operations in Turkey in 2009.