Fortis rose the most in 4 1/2 years in Brussels trading on the purchase, which makes Ping An its biggest investor. China's state-owned companies spent almost $17 billion on overseas financial purchases in 2007, buying stakes in Barclays Plc, Bear Stearns Cos., Blackstone Group and Standard Bank Group Ltd.
"Chinese financial companies are looking for growth through acquisitions outside their core market,'' said Leslie Phang, who helps oversee $1 billion at Commonwealth Private Bank in Singapore. "These are certainly very attractive investments from both a return and a diversification standpoint.''
Ping An, China's second-biggest insurance company, bought the shares on the Brussels and Amsterdam stock exchanges, it said in a statement today. Fortis, part of the group that acquired ABN Amro Holding NV, trades at about 6.4 times reported earnings, making it the second-cheapest company among Europe's 20 largest banks and insurers after Deutsche Bank AG, data compiled by Bloomberg show.