Poland's insurance group PZU, which has reached a 360-million-euro deal to buy RSA's business in the Baltics and Poland, so far failed to convince the Lithuanian Competition Council that its planned takeover of the country's leading non-life insurer Lietuvos Draudimas (Lithuanian Insurance) will have no negative effects on the market, the business daily Verslo Zinios reported on Wednesday.

PZU in June was given the green light to acquire Latvia's Baltaand last week obtained approval from the Polish financial supervision authority to take over Link4. Only some minor formalities remain to be completed regarding the Estonian business.

However, the acquisition of Lietuvos Draudimas, worth 620 millionlitas (EUR 180 mln), has not yet been finalized as the deal has only been green-lighted by the central Bank of Lithuania, the insurance market supervisor.

Michal Witkowski, corporate communications director at PZU, saidthat the transactions in Lithuania and Estonia would be completed by the end of the year. He said that PZU was working to put in place conditions that would help obtain the Competition Council's approval to buy Lietuvos Draudimas. The Poles expect the competition watchdog to make its decision on this issue on Oct. 10.

Read the full story 
PZU has problems obtaining clearance to buy LITHUANIA's top insurer