Japanese general insurance giant Tokio Marine has paused the sale of its $1bn Southeast Asia life insurance business, partly due to a dispute with a Malaysian partner over an expiring bancassurance agreement, four sources with knowledge of the matter said.
Tokio Marine last month filed a lawsuit against RHB Bank in Malaysia, seeking to enforce its right of first refusal over the 10-year that is due to expire by 31 December 2024, reported The Japan Times citing a bourse filing by RHB at that time.
Tokio Marine also asked RHB for details of the final bid that RHB has agreed to accept from other parties for a new deal, and applied for an interim injunction to prevent RHB from finalising an agreement with other parties, the filing showed.
Given the dispute, buyers have been unable to make offers that would meet Tokio Marine’s valuation expectations, said the first and second sources.
RHB Bank has said that Tokio Marine’s right of first refusal had already been exercised and fulfilled. The bank said that it had made an offer to Tokio Marine which the plaintiff did not accept. RHB Bank had also given Tokio Marine the opportunity to submit their bid as well as a further revised bid for the plaintiff to try to match the terms offered by other bidders, the bank said.
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