Samsung insurers weigh W9tr UK, US dealmaking push

Samsung’s two insurance arms left the door open Thursday to overseas deals potentially worth up to 9 trillion won ($6.6 billion), stopping short of denying reports linking them to major acquisitions in the UK and US.

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance is reportedly considering taking control of London-based specialty insurer Canopius, while Samsung Life Insurance is said to be weighing the purchase of about 15 percent of US financial group Principal Financial Group.

In separate regulatory filings, both insurers said no decisions had been made. Samsung Fire said it was “expanding its global business in search of new growth drivers,” while Samsung Life said it was reviewing investment opportunities at home and abroad.

The Korea Economic Daily estimated that Samsung Fire could spend 2 trillion won to 3 trillion won to increase its Canopius stake, while Samsung Life’s potential investment in Principal Financial could reach 5 trillion won to 6 trillion won.

Samsung Fire’s relationship with Canopius began in 2019, when it acquired 15.3 percent of Fortuna Topco, the holding company that owns the specialty insurer. It raised the stake to 40 percent in 2025.

The Korean insurer said in its 2024 integrated report that the investment was intended partly to build expertise in the Lloyd’s market and “secure the option of acquiring management control over the medium to long term.”

Buying most of the remaining shares would turn Samsung Fire from a strategic investor into the controlling shareholder of a global specialty insurer.

Canopius already gives Samsung Fire access to specialty underwriting expertise, the Lloyd’s market and international broker networks. Taking control could make specialty insurance and reinsurance a bigger pillar of Samsung Fire’s largely domestic business.

The move would also align with the insurer’s 2026 strategy, which calls for making overseas operations “a key engine of company-wide growth.”

The plan identifies Lloyd’s as a platform for expansion in Europe and North America and calls for deeper cooperation with Canopius.

Samsung Life has also been preparing for a broader overseas push.

Chief Financial Officer Lee Wan-sam said during an August earnings call that the insurer was “actively looking at M&A opportunities in developed markets such as the US, as well as in Asia.”

“We have begun reviewing a range of investment opportunities at home and abroad as we look for new growth drivers,” a Samsung Life official said Thursday, describing the process as preliminary.

In July, Samsung Life decided to buy back its New York and London investment subsidiaries from Samsung Asset Management, citing global business expansion.

Principal Financial Group, the reported target, is a major US retirement and asset management company with $808 billion in assets under management as of the second quarter. Its businesses span retirement services, asset management and employee benefits.

A minority stake could give Samsung Life access to Principal’s overseas retirement and asset management capabilities without requiring management control. Samsung Life has not confirmed that it is pursuing the investment.

The reports come as the insurers stand to receive substantial dividends from their holdings in Samsung Electronics.

Samsung Life owns about 8.51 percent of Samsung Electronics’ common shares, while Samsung Fire holds about 1.49 percent, giving them a combined stake of roughly 10 percent.

Samsung Electronics last month projected 90 trillion won to 110 trillion won in shareholder returns this year, including about 30 trillion won in third-quarter cash dividends.

Based on their current holdings, Samsung Life could receive about 2.55 trillion won from the payout and Samsung Fire about 450 billion won.

Neither insurer has said the dividends would finance a potential acquisition. But industry watchers say the windfall could give both companies greater flexibility to pursue multitrillion-won overseas deals.