The price and other details of the transaction were not disclosed.
The acqusition marks the entry of one of the world’s largest insurers into the fast-growing African insurance industry. However, as a Prudential spokesperson noted, since Express Life has just 16,000 active policy holders, it is not a major acquisition by the normal standards of global insurance groups like the Pru.
Nevertheless, the deal, while only thought to have been in the "low double digit millions" according to one report, is also seen nonetheless as significant, since the insurer has thus far avoided investing in the continent, bar a South African asset management operation, Prudential Portfolio Managers (South Africa).
Prudential chief executive Tidjane Thiam, who once served as a cabinet minister in his native Ivory Coast, has also talked up the prospects of Africa’s expanding middle class, published reports noted.
LeapFrog’s lead partner in Ghana, Doug Lacey, said in a statement, “Our experience with Express Life demonstrates the value of specialist fund managers who can source promising investment opportunities in emerging markets and work closely with these companies to create customer and shareholder value.
“And now we see that they become attractive to global players also committed to building sustainable and impactful businesses.”
Other markets that Prudential has entered this year include Cambodia, marking its 13th Asian country in which the company has life insurance operations.
