The Australian operations of European insurer Fortis have been sold to CGU, the local general insurance arm of British financial giant, CGNU. In what is believed to have been a close bidding contest between several major insurers (we tipped Royal & SunAlliance), CGU Insurance Australia put up between $330 million and $350 million to secure the VACC, AMEV and AIM brands.

London-based CGNU Group Executive Director Philip Twyman said the purchase will keep CGU in the “top five” of the Australian general insurance market.

It’s understood the deal includes a $37 million dividend to be paid by the Belgian/Dutch group to its Australian operations. The price is based on net assets at December 31 last year.