G Generali

By Giovanni Legorano 

MILAN--Italian insurer Assicurazioni Generali SpA said Monday it would sell its Swiss private bank BSI to Brazilian bank BTG Pactual for 1.5 billion Swiss Francs ($1.68 billion).

The insurer said the transaction would allow it to add 9 percentage points to its Solvency I ratio--a measure of financial soundness for insurers.

"With this transaction we exceed our Solvency 1 target, restoring the capital base of Generali over a year in advance of our 2015 plan" Chief Executive Mario Greco said in a statement.

The company had targeted a Solvency I ratio of 160% by 2015.

After struggling for around two years to sell the business, Generali said in May it had entered exclusive talks with BTG Pactual about a deal for the unit.

Write to Giovanni Legorano at giovanni.legorano@wsj.com

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