Great-West Lifeco sells US business for $1.2bn

Winnipeg-based insurance and financial holding company Great-West Lifeco has entered into an agreement with Dai-ichi Life Holdings Inc subsidiary firm Protective Life Corp to sell its US life insurance and annuity business for a total value of US$1.2bn.

Protective, a personal life insurance provider based in Birmingham, Alabama, will acquire Great-West’s bank-owned and corporate-owned life insurance, single premium life insurance, individual annuities and closed block life insurance and annuities, according to Bloomberg. The acquisition will be the largest in Protective’s history, and mark the company’s entrance into the executive benefits market.

“This business aligns well with our long-term plans for growth and scale. The life and annuity business has been a cornerstone of Protective throughout our history and will continue to be an area of future growth for the company,” said Richard J. Bielen, President and Chief Executive Officer, Protective. “Together, Great-West and Protective bring strength and stability to this transaction with a shared focus on serving people and doing the right thing – for our employees, our distributors, and most importantly, our customers. We are excited about the opportunity to reach new markets and provide valued protection to even more customers.”

SEE ALSO: 

• Shawcor Ltd enters into agreement to acquire ZCL Composites

• Paladin Technologies expands into US with TekWorks acquisition

• Netflix Canada to increase fees in bid to fund upcoming shows and films

• Read the January edition of North American Business Chief here.

The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2019 and is subject to regulatory approval.

"This transaction allows us to focus on the retirement and asset management markets in the US," said Paul Mahon, President and Chief Executive Officer, Great-West Lifeco. "We continually evaluate capital deployment opportunities at Great-West Lifeco. With the strengthened capital position resulting from this transaction, we will also consider other capital management activities, including potential share repurchases, to mitigate the earnings impact of the sale."