EXHIBIT 23.2

INDEPENDENT AUDITORS’ CONSENT

The Board of Directors
The St. Paul Companies, Inc.:

We consent to incorporation by reference in the registration statement on Form S-8 Deferred Stock Plan for Non-Employee Directors of The St. Paul Companies, Inc., of our reports dated January 23, 2001, relating to the consolidated balance sheets of The St. Paul Companies, Inc. and subsidiaries as of December 31, 2000 and 1999, and the related consolidated statements of income, shareholders’ equity, comprehensive income and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2000 and related schedules I through V, which reports appear or are incorporated by reference in the December 31, 2000 annual report on Form 10-K of The St. Paul Companies, Inc. Our report refers to a change in the Company's method of accounting for insurance-related assessments.

Minneapolis, Minnesota
June 14, 2001

/s/ KPMG LLP