Holiday company Saga in talks with Ageas about insurance partnership
Saga says no certainty deal will go through
Postpones HY results
Shares rise as much as 14.4%
Adds shares in paragraph 1 and 3, detail on Ageas in paragraph 5
Oct 2 (Reuters) -British holiday group Saga SAGA.L said on Wednesday that it is in talks with Belgian insurer Ageas AGES.BR about a potential partnership for its insurance business, sending Saga's shares up more than 14%.
Saga, which specialises in holidays and insurance for people over 50, has faced challenges in its insurance business and has taken steps, including increasing prices in insurance underwriting and reducing staff to control costs.
Saga's shares rose as much as 14.4% to 128.8 pence in early trade. They are down 18% so far this year.
The potential partnership follows Ageas' unsuccessful attempt to buy UK rival Direct Line in a 3.17 billion pound bid in March.
Ageas, which presented a new strategic plan in September, is aiming to capitalise on the growing demand for pension and savings products from aging populations in Europe and Asia.
Sky News, which first reported on the talks between the two companies on Tuesday, said that under the proposed deal, Ageas would make an up-front payment to Saga.
Saga did not disclose the amount in its statement on Wednesday and said it was not certain that the deal would take place.
In September last year, Saga put a sale process on hold for its insurance underwriting arm, whose potential sale to Australia's Open was terminated earlier in 2023.
Separately, Saga postponed its half-year results that were due on Wednesday, but said its first-half performance was in-line with its expectations.
It did not give a date for publication of the results.
($1 = 0.7530 pounds)
Reporting by Yamini Kalia and Surbhi Misra in Bengaluru; Editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi, Sonia Cheema and Jane Merriman
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