HSBC sells health insurer to Swiss Medical Group

UK-based financial group HSBC (NYSE: HBC) has sold its Argentine medical insurer HSBC Salud to Swiss Medical Group, HSBC said in a statement, without revealing the price tag. HSBC Salud is one of the largest providers of prepaid medical insurance in Argentina but at June 30 this year the company registered negative net equity of 3.6mn pesos (US$1.2mn), under UK GAAP. The company is serving some 158,000 individual and corporate clients. HSBC said that prepaid health insurance is not one of the group's core businesses and the proceeds from the sale will be used to strengthen the capital base of its other interests in Argentina, which include banking, pension fund management, life, retirement and general insurance. In December, HSBC paid US$30mn to New York Life (NYLI) for the 40% stake it did not control in HSBC Salud. That transaction formed part of an agreement dated October 2000 that provided for NYLI to sell its 40% interest in HSBC Salud to HSBC prior to September 30, 2004. NYLI and HSBC have continued their partnership in Argentine pension manager HSBC Maxima and life insurer HSBC New York Life. In February this year HSBC sold its Brazilian health insurance operation to local underwriter Sul America. Swiss Medical Group is one of the largest providers of health insurance services in Argentina with 300,000 clients and an annual turnover of 450mn pesos. The group will take on 422 employees from HSBC as part of the acquisition. HSBC is one of the largest financial groups in the world with some 9,500 offices in 79 markets.