The Hong Kong office of Debevoise & Plimpton is advising AIA Group in its 15-year exclusive bancassurance partnership with The Bank of East Asia, Limited (“BEA”).  Under the agreements, BEA will distribute AIA’s life insurance products on an exclusive basis in Hong Kong and Mainland China.

As part of the transaction, AIA has also agreed to acquire BEA Life Limited (a wholly-owned subsidiary of BEA) and a closed portfolio of life insurance policies underwritten by Blue Cross (Asia-Pacific) Insurance Limited.  The transaction is subject to obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals.

AIA will pay a total transaction consideration of HK$5,070 million. This strategic partnership will give AIA access to BEA’s extensive distribution network and affluent customer base, and further strengthen AIA’s competitive advantage across the Greater Bay Area.

The Debevoise team advising AIA is led by partner Edwin Northover and includes international counsel Jan Buschmann and associates Monisha D’Souza and Tiffany Wu.  The team supported AIA Hong Kong General Counsel, Sarah Elder and her team.