Pearl Problems Rob AMP Of Italian Fund Manager

AMP announced today that its proposed acquisition of Commerzbank Asset Management Italia (CAMI) was off. The reason is the unwillingness of the Bank of Italy to approve the purchase until it was satisfied that the capital weaknesses of AMP’s UK life and pensions subsidiary, Pearl Assurance, had been overcome. It emerged in September that the Pearl had breached its minimum regulatory capital requirements and, although AMP has taken corrective action, it was not soon enough to permit the CAMI purchase to go ahead within the statutory timetable.