Occident, the new Seguros Bilbao brand, shows its support for ALS sufferers at the DalecandELA Festival, which brought together 10,000 participants

"The brand, which will integrate GCO's traditional business companies (Grupo Catalana Occidente), joins the solidarity festival to raise awareness and support people suffering from ALS and their carers in the Basque Country."

Occident, the new Seguros Bilbao brand, has become the official sponsor of the DalecandELA Festival, the solidarity event that took place in Gexto from 8 to 10 September with the aim of giving a voice to Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) sufferers and their carers. The festival brought together more than 10,000 participants over the weekend.

To mark the collaboration, Occident sponsored and gave its name to “Travesía Occident Getxo por la ELA” (Occident Getxo Crossing for ALS), consisting of two water routes at Ereaga beach starting and finishing in Puerto Viejo de Getxo: the first, with a 4.6 km swim; and the second, most popular route, of 2 km. In addition, Occident sponsored several other sports activities: a morning yoga session, adapted paddle surf routes, and various rugby activities. The presence of the insurance brand was focused on the sports area of the festival and on the main stage, where artists such as Ariel Rot, La Bien Querida and Smile performed. 

In the words of the Deputy Director General of Seguros Bilbao, one of the companies that will soon be merged into Occident, José Manuel Ereño, "as an insurance company, we work to respond to our customers' needs and to provide them with well-being. In this regard, supporting initiatives that help improve our society, such as the DalecandELA Festival, is aligned with our intrinsic values as an organisation".

Since its inception in 2019, the DalecandELA association has worked with the aim of raising awareness of this disease among society, governments and institutions; raising funds for research; and to help improve the quality of life of those affected by ALS.

About Occident

GCO (Grupo Catalana Occidente) announced the merging of its traditional business companies (Seguros Catalana Occidente, Plus Ultra Seguros, Seguros Bilbao and NorteHispana Seguros) under a single brand, Occident. This merger is part of the corporate simplification process that the insurance group put in motion years ago and aims to achieve a more streamlined organisation that responds quickly and effectively to market demands.

The unification process will be implemented in two phases: first, predictably at the end of 2023, the merger of Seguros Catalana Occidente, Plus Ultra Seguros and Seguros Bilbao will take effect, which will then operate under the Occident brand. In a second phase, at a later date, NorteHispana Seguros will also be included.