Principal Financial Group Inc., the seller of life insurance and retirement products, agreed to buy AFP Cuprum SA in a $1.5 billion deal to expand in Chile.
The deal is expected to be completed in the first quarter and immediately add to earnings per share and return on equity, Des Moines, Iowa-based Principal said Monday in a statement distributed by Business Wire.
Chief Executive Officer Larry Zimpleman is expanding in Latin American nations including Chile, Brazil and Mexico to capitalize on the region’s growing middle class and the increasing role of private companies managing retirement funds. Cuprum has about $32.1 billion under management, according to the statement.
“This acquisition continues our effort to find targeted, strategic acquisitions that strengthen our competitive position in the most attractive emerging retirement and long-term savings markets,” Zimpleman said in the statement. “Cuprum represents the sixth such transaction in the past two years and adds meaningfully to our fee-based earnings.”
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