THE LION of San Marcos is about to disappear from the Panama business scene as insurance giant Generali  pulls in its claws and withdraws from 13 countries, including Panama.

The shrinking of operations comes as Generali, Italy's largest insurer, asks the Rothschild bank  to find buyers for its subsidiaries in Colombia, Ecuador and Panama, among markets in which it does not have a large  business participation.

The company is seeking to raise about 1 billion euros ($ 1.1 billion) by abandoning 13-15 countries in an effort  to cut costs and improve revenue.

Generali will continue to invest in  large Latin American markets such as Brazil and Argentina.

Operations in Colombia, Ecuador and Panama are too small to justify the presence of the company in these markets.

The Rothschild bank is in the process of searching for potential bidders for the assets in those three countries, and a packet of information has already been sent to potential stakeholders. Generali's plans also include divesting businesses in Countries such as Holland, Belgium and Portugal.

The company was founded in 1831 under the name Assicurazioni Generali Autro-Italiche and three years later it was established in Spain.

In 1848 it changed its name to Assicurazioni Generali and adopted the lion of San Marcos as its logo.