Brazilian insurance broker Alper to acquire health insurance company Ferf

Brazil's Alper Consultoria e Corretora de Seguros SA will continue with its insurance acquisition spree through the purchase of 100% of specialized health insurance firm Ferf – Consultoria em Benefícios e Corretagem de Seguros e Riscos Ltda. for a reported initial sum of 35.2 million reais.

Alper's board of directors greenlighted the purchase in a Jan. 7 meeting, according to a press release, paving the way for its second acquisition in less than a week.

The deal, which will be submitted to shareholders and regulators for approval, is initially estimated to be worth 35.2 million reais, and could increase to 44 million reais if certain performance targets are met within the next few years, according a Valor Econômico report.

Alper CEO Marcos Couto told Valor the company will continue with its aggressive acquisition strategy this year after a brief hiatus in the first half of 2020 due to the uncertainty generated by the pandemic.

Over the last six months, Alper has carried out a string of purchases for an estimated 147 million reais, including that of fellow insurance broker Transbroker Consultoria e Corretagem de Seguros Ltda. for 58.1 million reais. Earlier this week, Alper had linked a deal to buy Next Marka, a farming and corporate insurance firm for a reported 22.8 million reais.

As of Jan. 7, US$1 was equivalent to 5.39 Brazilian reais.