Aviva: May axe 1500 jobs after takeover

British insurance giant Aviva said Monday it may axe 1,500 jobs over the next two years as a result of its takeover of rival Friends Life.
"As a result of this transaction, Aviva expects to deliver approximately £225 million ($341 million, 293 million euros) of annual savings by the end of 2017," the group said in a statement.
"This may result in a reduction of approximately 1,500 roles from across the enlarged Aviva Group of approximately 31,500 people."
The company added that no specific teams, roles or locations had been identified, while it will seek to keep redundancies to a minimum.
Aviva had agreed to purchase Friends Life for more than £5.0 billion late last year, in a deal aimed at creating the country's biggest insurer.
Both sets of shareholders are due to vote on the takeover on March 26.