Shareholders of Axa SA, the Paris-based insurance giant, and Finaxa approved their merger Friday, Axa announced, and the deal closed that day.
From Axa's accounting and fiscal standpoint, the merger is retroactive to Jan. 1. It will result in the creation of 299 million Axa shares projected to take place Dec. 28 and the cancellation of 337.5 million Axa shares owned by Finaxa and its subsidiaries as of Jan. 9.
The net effect of these transactions will be to reduce Axa's shares outstanding by 38.5 million, which will have limited impact on earnings per share this year but is expected to be about 2% accretive in 2006, the company said. Shareholders' equity will be reduced by about $957.6 million. French Mutuelles Axa will hold 14.3% of Axa's outstanding shares, with 22.7% of the voting rights.
