Taipei  - Taiwan Cooperative Bank, one of the largest commercial banks in Taiwan, is likely to form a joint insurance venture with BNP Paribas SA in mid-2008, a newspaper said on Thursday.

Taiwan Cooperative, which is 40 per cent state-owned, is expected to hold a 51 per cent stake in the venture and has the right to appoint the new insurer's chairman, while its French counterpart would take a 49 per cent stake and the right to appoint the president, the Taipei Times quoted Taiwan Cooperative Chairman Hsu Teh-nan as saying.

If the plan proceeds smoothly, the new insurance venture would become the third of its kind established in the past two years, the Taipei Times said.

In 2006, state-controlled First Financial Holding Co announced plans to team up with Aviva Plc of the United Kingdom to form the First Aviva Life Insurance Co. With paid-in capital of 2.25 billion Taiwan dollars (72.6 million US dollars), the Taiwanese-British venture began business at the beginning of 2008.

In June last year, Taishin Financial Holding Co also announced plans to form a joint venture with Dutch insurer Aegon NV in Taiwan. The new venture is expected to start operation later this year, the daily said.

BNP Paribas has already tapped into Taiwan's life insurance business through Cardif Assurance Vie, but Lin Tien, a vice president and spokesman for Taiwan Cooperative Bank, said the planned venture would co-exist with Cardif in the Taiwan market as the two will have their respective distribution channels and product designs. (dpa)