AXA Cooperative Insurance Company receives commercial registration in Saudi Arabia

This announcement follows the issuance of a Royal Decree approving AXA Co-operative's launch of operations as a licensed co-operative insurance company in Saudi Arabia and the Initial Public Offering which was over 5 times over-subscribed in April. AXA Co-operative is a member of the AXA Group, headquartered in Paris.

Globally, the AXA Group has more than 67m clients and 135,000 employees. AXA is a major international insurer in the Middle East, offering a wide range of insurance products and services for corporate and individual customers.

Jean-Louis Laurent Josi, CEO of AXA Gulf, said:

"As the largest market in the Middle East with excellent growth opportunities, Saudi Arabia is important for the AXA Group. The establishment of AXA Cooperative in Saudi Arabia' will strengthen our position as the most successful international insurance company in the region. AXA is currently in the top 5 of the largest insurers in the Kingdom and has recently secured the insurance arrangements of several large contracts in the Kingdom including Power Generation, Railway and Telecommunications projects"

Paul Adamson, nominated Chief Executive Officer of AXA Cooperative commented: "AXA Group has been operating in Saudi Arabia for over three decades and the establishment of AXA Cooperative will enable us to develop our operations in the Kingdom to better serve the needs of both businesses and private clients in the Kingdom.'

In the current worldwide economic turmoil, the establishment of AXA Cooperative will also reinforce AXA's position as a solid and healthy company. Indeed, consumers and distributors have reacted to the current financial crisis by scrutinizing their insurers more carefully seeking out quality protection with improved claims service at a competitive premium.

Paul Adamson: "For many, the certainty that an insurance company has the financial strength to pay claims when you file them is of utmost importance. No matter what aspect of an insurance company is important to the consumer - price, service, level of advice - be sure to choose a company that is financially sound. Little else will matter if the company can not pay your claim!"

AXA is well know in the region for its ability to pay claims. In the last 12 months AXA paid large claims in Saudi Arabia in the region of over $15M. This demonstrates AXA's ability as one of the world's largest international insurers to settle claims locally and provide financial support to clients when they need it most.

On top of that, AXA's international experience of minimizing and controlling exposure to potential losses is available to our customers free of charge. We work in partnership with our customers to find the most suitable and cost effective solutions to improve risk. AXA also provides other added value services and works with medium / large commercial clients to ensure they have Business Continuity plans which help management plan how they would maintain their business in the event of an unforeseen loss.