Generali and the owner of France’s Natixis Investment Managers agreed to jointly create a European asset manager overlooking $1.979 trillion.

With €1.9tn in AUM, the joint venture would allow the pair to expand globally and speed up a push into private markets.

The board of Italy's top insurer Generali has approved a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that paves the way for an asset management deal with BPCE's Natixis Investment Managers to crate a European champion,

Under the terms of the tie-up, BPCE and Generali Investments will combine their asset management operations in a 50-50 joint venture, people familiar with the situation said. A non-binding preliminary agreement could be reached as early as next week. It would still need to be approved by the relevant unions and authorities.

Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A. (Generali) and BPCE announced on January 21 that they have signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to create a joint venture between their respective asset management operations Generali Investments Holding (GIH) and Natixis Investment Managers (Natixis IM).

Natixis Investment Managers is set to merge with the asset management arm of Italian insurer Generali, creating the largest European asset manager by revenue.

The investment committee of Generali has given its green light to the Italian insurer's planned asset management deal with Natixis Investment Managers, two sources close to the matter said on Sunday.

The combined entity will have equal ownership, with each party holding 50% and sharing governance and control.