CELEX: 32020M9910
Language: en
Date: 2020-09-22 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 22/09/2020 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.9910 - MAPFRE GROUP / SANTANDER GROUP / POPULAR SEGUROS JV) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
                                                                Brussels, 22.09.2020
                                                                C(2020) 6602 final
                                                                                 PUBLIC VERSION
                                                                To the notifying parties
Subject:        Case M.9910 - MAPFRE GROUP/SANTANDER GROUP/POPULAR
                SEGUROS JV
                Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation
                                       1
                (EC) No 139/2004 and Article 57 of the Agreement on the European
                                     2
                Economic Area
Dear Sir or Madam,
1.      On 21 August 2020, the European Commission received notification of a proposed
        concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which:
               a. the undertakings Mapfre S.A., and its subsidiaries (‘Mapfre Group’, Spain)
                   and Banco Santander, S.A., and its subsidiaries (‘Santander Group’, Spain)
                   acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) and 3(4) of the Merger
                   Regulation joint control of Popular Seguros – Companhia de Seguros, S.A.
                   (‘Popular JV’, Portugal), controlled by the Santander Group;
               b. Mapfre Group acquires sole control of a portfolio of life insurance policies
                   (the “Portfolio”), controlled by Santander Group3.
2.      The acquisition of joint control by Mapfre Group and Santander Group over Popular
        JV and the acquisition of sole control over the Portfolio by Mapfre Group are
        conditional upon each other and carried out by the same undertaking (Mapfre Group),
        constituting a single concentration within the meaning of Article 3 of the Merger
        Regulation. . The concentration is accomplished by way of purchase of shares and
        assets.
1       OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the ‘Merger Regulation’). With effect from 1 December 2009, the Treaty on
        the Functioning of the European Union (‘TFEU’) has introduced certain changes, such as the
        replacement of ‘Community’ by ‘Union’ and ‘common market’ by ‘internal market’. The terminology
        of the TFEU will be used throughout this decision.
2       OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 3 (the ‘EEA Agreement’).
3       Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union No C 289, 1.9.2020, p. 2
Commission européenne, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Bruxelles, BELGIQUE
Europese Commissie, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Brussel, BELGIË
Tel: +32 229-91111. Fax: +32 229-64301. E-mail: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu.
 ---pagebreak--- 3. The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:
   −    for Mapfre Group: insurance and reinsurance activities across 45 countries,
        including Portugal, Spain and other countries in Europe and worldwide,
   −    for Santander Group: retail banking, corporate banking, investment banking, asset
        management and treasury across Europe, as well as in the United States, Latin
        America and Asia,
   −    for Popular JV: the provision of non-life insurance in Portugal,
   −    for the Portfolio: a portfolio of life insurance policies.
4. After examination of the notification, the European Commission has concluded that
   the notified operation falls within the scope of the Merger Regulation and of
   paragraph 5(c) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of
   certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.4
5. For the reasons set out in the Notice on a simplified procedure, the European
   Commission has decided not to oppose the notified operation and to declare it
   compatible with the internal market and with the EEA Agreement. This decision is
   adopted in application of Article 6(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation and Article 57 of
   the EEA Agreement.
                                                      For the Commission
                                                      (Signed)
                                                      Olivier GUERSENT
                                                      Director-General
4  OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.
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