ONDD to expand into Russia

A joint venture between the Belgian export credit agency ONDD and the Russian insurer Ingosstrakh has secured a licence to operate in the Russian insurance and reinsurance market.

The Russian-Belgian insurer, Ingo-ONDD, will specialise in covering credit risks for domestic and international companies active in the Russian market, both for domestic and export transactions.

ONDD will have a 66.67% stake in the new joint venture, with key staff of the new firm coming from Ingosstrakh’s trade credit insurance department. The joint venture was initially set up in August this year.

Russia is a traditional market for ONDD. In the mid-1990s, ONDD was the first company to insure export transactions to Russia on an open account basis.

The tie-up with Ingosstrakh was a natural move for the company, given that it already has a 50% stake in Garant Insurance, a firm set up by Ingosstrakh, and in which the Russian firm still maintains a 50% share. ONDD first acquired its take in Garant in 2006, and is now looking to increase its share by up to 83%.