Winterhur To Buy Colonial U.K. Operations

Winterhur Insurance Group, a subsidiary of credit Swiss/First Boston, has agreed to pay £332 million ($515 million) for the British insurance and pension business of Colonial, an Australian insurer, which has been seeking a buyer for its U.K. investment.

Winterhur will retain Colonial as the manager of its approximately £3.5 billion investment portfolio, and will gain an additional 380,000 customers.