Sri Lanka’s Softlogic to acquire Diamond Life Insurance

<div>Softlogic Life Insurance PLC, the second-largest life insurer in Sri Lanka, is set to acquire Diamond Life Insurance Company, a relatively new player in Bangladesh’s life insurance market, which generates more than Tk 12,000 crore in annual gross premiums.</div><div><br></div><div>The Sri Lankan company has signed a share purchase agreement to acquire a 60 percent stake in Diamond Life Insurance for nearly $1.9 million (Tk 23.4 crore), according to a disclosure filed with the Colombo Stock Exchange on June 18.</div><div><br></div><div>On the matter, Diamond Life Insurance Chairman Riad Mahmud said discussions were still ongoing and that the deal had not yet been finalised.</div><div><br></div>

<div>“We have received a decent valuation from our perspective,” said Riad, who is also president of the Bangladesh Association of Publicly Listed Companies (BAPLC), explaining the rationale behind the sale. However, he declined to disclose the amount.</div><div><br></div><div>Diamond Life Insurance began operations in 2014 with an authorised capital of Tk 100 crore and a paid-up capital of Tk 18 crore.</div><div><br></div><div>If completed, Softlogic will become the third foreign insurer in Bangladesh’s life insurance market, after MetLife and LIC.</div>