New Bancassurance JV in Spain

Aviva PLC
06 June 2007



News release


6 June 2007


    AVIVA ANNOUNCES NEW BANCASSURANCE JOINT VENTURE IN SPAIN WITH CAJAMURCIA


Aviva plc ('Aviva'), the international savings, investments and insurance group,
announces that it has entered into a long term bancassurance partnership with
Spanish savings bank, Caja de Ahorros de Murcia ('Cajamurcia'). This new
partnership will enhance Aviva's leadership position in the Spanish life market
where it has ranked in the top three in terms of gross written premiums for the
last five years and leverages Aviva's extensive bancassurance expertise.


Cajamurcia will provide exclusive access to its network of 413 branches to
Cajamurcia Vida y Pensiones S.A. ('Cajamurcia Vida'), the newly created life
insurance company jointly owned by Aviva and Cajamurcia, to sell life insurance
and pension products. Aviva will have management control over Cajamurcia Vida
and will consolidate its business at a group level.


The consideration will be Eur 112.5m in cash. Further consideration may be
payable up to a maximum of an additional Eur 275m dependent on the performance
of the partnership.


The Cajamurcia network and customer base will bring Aviva's total bancassurance
network to more than 4,600 branches, providing access to more than 10 million
potential customers, thus strengthening its position as the second largest
banking distribution network in Spain. The bancassurance channel accounted for
over 72% of 2006 new business premiums in the Spanish life market.



Cajamurcia is the leading financial institution in Murcia where it has a 33%
market share in deposits. The partnership provides excellent geographic fit and
strengthens Aviva's position in Levante, one of the fastest growing areas of
Spain. Cajamurcia has expansion plans to increase its branch network to up to
500 branches over the next three years and this will complement the growth
expected from Aviva's other bancassurance partners.

Tidjane Thiam, group executive director, Aviva Europe, said:  'Our partnership
with Cajamurcia will further strengthen Aviva's position in Spanish
bancassurance. Aviva's expertise, both internationally and in Spain, combined
with Cajamurcia's distribution capabilities present an excellent opportunity to
realise value for all stakeholders.



'Our bancassurance business continues to go from strength to strength and now
accounts for 30%(1) of Aviva's worldwide life and pension sales. As a recognised
leader in this field, we've become the partner of choice for banks across
Europe. We continue to seek opportunities to extend our bancassurance business
as part of our multi-distribution model, applying our expertise in new and
existing markets.'



Carlos Egea Krauel, chief executive officer of Cajamurcia, said:  'This
agreement will allow both parties to deploy their competitive advantages.
Cajamurcia will be able to offer high quality and value added products in a key
strategic business for us. Aviva, the European leader in life and pensions, has
chosen Cajamurcia because of its commercial efficiency and international rating;
Cajamurcia's potential to become a key player in the Spanish Mediterranean Arc;
and because of its imminent development in Madrid, where it expects to open 50
new branches.'



The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.



                                     -ends-



Enquiries:



Media

Hayley Stimpson, director of external affairs, [phone]

Sue Winston, head of group media relations [phone]



Analysts
Charles Barrows, investor relations director [phone]

Amanda Wilbraham, senior manager investor relations [phone]





Notes to editors:



About Aviva

Aviva is the leading provider of life and pensions in Europe with substantial
positions in other markets around the world, making it the world's fifth largest
insurance group based on gross worldwide premiums at 31 December 2005. Aviva's
principal business activities are long-term savings, fund management and general
insurance, with worldwide total sales of £41.5 billion and assets under
management of £364 billion at 31 December 2006



Aviva Spain

Aviva has been operating in the Spanish insurance market for over 114 years, and
has nationwide coverage through a network of more than 275 financial advisers
and over 45 branches. Additionally, Aviva is present in the bancassurance market
through the acquisition of 50% of Bancaja's long-term savings business, Aseval,
in 2000 and subsequent agreements to acquire 25% of Caja Granada life and
pensions agency, and 50% of Unicorp Vida, Bia Galicia, and Caja Espana Vida, the
life and pensions operations of Unicaja, Caixa Galicia and Caja Espana
respectively.



About Cajamurcia

As of December 2006, Cajamurcia ranks in the top-20 Spanish savings banks by
assets with Eur 16.2bn. With a cost-income ratio of 37% in 2006, Cajamurcia is
the leading saving bank in terms of efficiency in Spain and one of the few
medium-sized entities with an 'A+' credit rating. (Fitch). Cajamurcia is working
on an ambitious three-year strategic plan to further expand its network beyond
Murcia. Currently, Cajamurcia has a client base of over 1 million individuals
and a network of 413 branches, 39% of them outside its home region, including a
significant presence in Comunidad Valenciana, Albacete, Almeria and Madrid.





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(1) Measured in terms of PVNBP


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