The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission today announced that it will not oppose the proposed acquisition of GIO by AMP. 'The acquisition consolidates AMP's number one position in life insurance and elevates it to second in retail investment products and third in general (non-life) insurance,' ACCC Chairman, Professor Allan Fels, said today.
'In all of these areas, however, there remains a substantial number of strong competitors and there do not appear to be any problems with concentration.' In one line of general insurance, namely workers compensation, the acquisition crosses the ACCC's merger concentration thresholds* in New South Wales. However, premiums in this State are regulated by the State WorkCover Authority in accordance with the Workers Compensation Act 1987.
'The ACCC is conscious of the increasing number of mergers in the financial services industry and is monitoring developments to ensure that the drive for scale and efficiencies does not disadvantage consumers,' Professor Fels said.
For further information about this media release: Professor Allan Fels, Chairman, (03) 9290 1812 Ms Lin Enright, Director, Public Relations, (02) 6243 1108 MR170/98
Note for Editors: *When assessing a merger proposal under section 50 of the Trade Practices Act 1974, the ACCC first examines the level of concentration in relevant markets to determine whether the merger falls below certain thresholds.
Usually, if:
- the market share of the merged entity is above 40 per cent; or
- the combined market shares of the four largest market participants is above 75 per cent and the share of the merged entity is above 15 per cent;
- then the merger is likely to merit detailed consideration.