Although the company traces its roots back to 1816, the brand name Gjensidige originates from the life insurance company
Christiania almindelige gjensidige forsørgelsesanstalt that was established in 1847. In the early 1970s the p&c-company traded under the name
Samtrygd, whereas the life insurance company had simplified its name to Gjensidige Liv. The two companies formed a strategic alliance in 1976, adopting Gjensidige as a joint brand name, but as both companies were mutually owned they did not merge. In 1992 Gjensidige acquired
Forenede Forsikring and in 1993 Gjensidige Bank was created with
banking services. In 1999 Gjensidige and the savings bank
Sparebanken NOR created the
Gjensidige NOR-group. The Group was a strategic alliance between mutually owned companies. When Gjensidige NOR merged with
Den norske Bank in 2003 to form
DnB NOR, Gjensidige Forsikring remained an independent company. In 2007 Gjensidige acquired shares in
Storebrand, and for some time held the position as the number one shareholder with 24.33% of the stock. The entire shareholding was sold in 2014. In 2010 Gjensidige demutualised and was listed on the
Oslo Stock Exchange. The Gjensidige Foundation is the largest owner with some 62 percent of the shares. ==See also==