AXA and BMPS to extend their bancassurance agreement to former Banca Antonveneta's distribution network

Siena / Parigi, 10th february 2910 - AXA and Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena (BMPS) announced today the extension of their bancassurance agreement in Italy to the 1,000 branches of former Banca Antonveneta. AXA will pay Euro 240 million to BMPS for this transaction, which will be funded internally.

The AXA MPS insurance joint-venture therefore extends its current network from ca. 2,000 to 3,000 branches in total, reaching an additional 1.6 million potential clients.

AXA and BMPS entered into a strategic partnership in 2007, creating one of Italy’s leading bancassurance providers for life, non life and pension products. BMPS then acquired Antonveneta to further strengthen its competitive position, becoming the third largest retail bank in Italy. Following the termination of the exclusive bancassurance agreement between Antonveneta and its historical partner in June 2009, AXA and BMPS benefit from Antonveneta’s full distribution capacity for their AXA MPS joint venture going forward.