Mirae Asset Life Insurance Co. of South Korea has obtained the government’s permission to proceed with its purchase of PCA Life Insurance Co., a subsidiary of UK-based Prudential Plc.

Mirae Asset Life Insurance announced on Thursday that it had received approval from the Financial Services Commission on Tuesday. The deal is expected to be worth KRW170 billion (US$150 million) as of November 2016, when the purchase agreement between the two firms was signed.

If the acquisition is successful, it will make Mirae the country’s fifth-largest life insurer with KRW33.4 trillion (US$29.3 billion), overtaking ING Life Insurance Korea.

According to Mirae, it plans to become the top retirement planner in the country by combining the strengths of the two companies. In an ageing population such as South Korea, there is high demand for retirement-related products.

The merging process is expected to be completed in the first half of 2018.


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