New Business Results 1999

Legal & General Group PLC
14 January 2000




                   Legal & General Group Plc
                   1999 New Business Results
                            
                            
     A record £16.5 billion invested with the Group in 1999
     
     Funds under management reached £104 billion - up 25%

          
Worldwide EPI*                     £628m        +27%
UK total EPI*                      £541m        +24%
UK individual EPI*                 £442m        +20%
UK corporate EPI*                   £99m        +46%
International EPI*                  £87m        +50%
                                                         
New fund management business       £13.1bn      +16%


*Equivalent Premium Income (EPI) is total annual premiums + 10% of
 single premiums and includes unit trust sales, for continuing 
 operations.



Group Chief Executive, David Prosser, said: 'This is another set of
record results showing the continuing strength and momentum of our 
customer focused business.  UK new business exceeded £500 million EPI
for the first time and sales have almost trebled since 1995 - a compound
growth rate of 29% per annum.

'Our fund management business won £13.1 billion in new funds - another
record.  Funds under management have exceeded £100 billion for the first
time and have trebled over the last five years.  This makes Legal & 
General one of the fastest growing UK fund management businesses.


'Our strategy of good value products, provided to customers through the
distribution channel of their choice, continues to build market share
and gives a good return to shareholders.  We are very well positioned
for the future.

The support of our many customers and business partners has enabled us
to achieve these remarkable results.  With their continued support,
Legal & General faces the future with great confidence and high
expectations.'



UK business
===========

Retail
------
1999 saw further strong growth in new individual business, up 20% to
£442m EPI (1998: £368m).  New business in the final quarter was £102m
EPI, an increase of 23% over the final quarter of 1998.

Life
Mortgage related business grew rapidly in 1999, as Legal & General built
upon its strength in the housing market, both through Business
Partnerships and by focusing on IFAs.  As a consequence, life annual
premium sales grew by 37% to £126m (1998: £92m). Mortgage related annual
premiums include £20m of protection business and £46m of Flexible
Mortgage PEP/ISA sales.  Single premium bond sales remained strong
throughout 1999, growing by 42% to £634m (1998: £446m), supported by the
launch of our new With-Profits Bond in August.

Pensions
Our continued success in the group personal pensions market has largely
offset the uncertainties created in the individual personal pensions
market, where sales have slowed ahead of the launch of Stakeholder
Pensions.  New individual pension and annuity business, including group
personal pensions, increased to £142m EPI (1998: £138m). We believe
Legal & General is well positioned for the introduction of Stakeholder
Pensions in April 2001.

Unit trusts and PEPs/ISAs
Legal & General enjoyed a strong final PEP season and, although
investors' initial reaction to ISAs was one of caution, they have become
increasingly accepted.  Single payment ISA sales in the second half of
1999 exceeded PEP sales over the equivalent period of 1998 by 18%.
This - together with increased institutional sales - produced a 16%
increase in single payment sales over the full year to £877m (1998: 
£755m).  Total PEP and ISA assets under management now exceed £2.5bn.

Banking
New mortgage advances grew by 83% to £271m, driven by our Flexible
Reserve product. Mortgage loans now total £868m.  The launch of Legal &
General's 'Easy Access' LIBOR tracker deposit account in November has
generated an encouraging response from savers.  By the year-end, Legal &
General Bank deposits exceeded £1.03bn (1998: £942m) on behalf of some
66,000 customers.

Distribution
Multi-channel distribution is a key component in Legal & General's
growth strategy.  This maintains the greatest access to potential
customers and embraces our business partners, IFAs and direct sales to
customers through our call centre, the Internet and 'off the page'.  Each
of these channels is making increasing use of e-commerce opportunities
to drive down costs and to enhance customer service.  All channels have
achieved volume growth, but growth continues to be strongest in the IFA
channel, with individual new business growing by 31% over the prior year.

Corporate
UK corporate life and pensions new business in 1999 grew by 46% to £99m
EPI (1998: £68m).  Strong growth in bulk purchase annuity business in
the first and final quarters of the year pushed single premiums up by
85% to £643m (1998: £348m).  The group risk business achieved record
sales levels, with new annual premiums increasing by 20% to £24m (1998:
£20m).


Investment management
Our investment management business provides asset management expertise
to Legal & General's Retail and Corporate businesses, as well as to
trustees of pension schemes and other institutional clients.  Total
assets under management exceeded £100bn at the year-end, of which over
60% are held for external clients.  This underlines Legal & General's
position as a major UK investment house and as a leading provider of
index tracking services.

New funds under management rose 16% to £13.1bn, following the
exceptional result of £11.3bn achieved in 1998.

International life and pensions
New business from the Group's international operations grew strongly to
£87m EPI, an increase of 50%.

Our business in the USA had another excellent year and has established
itself as one of the major specialist writers of term assurance.  Legal
& General America markets its products through a national brokerage
distribution to high net worth individuals.  Its success is based upon
excellent underwriting capabilities and the efficiency of its low cost,
internet based operating environment.  New business (which is almost
entirely annual premium business) increased by 77% to $101m EPI (1998:
$57m).

Continuing strong performance in the Netherlands saw sales grow by 20%
to Dfl 30m EPI (1998: Dfl 25m).  Annual premiums grew particularly
strongly - up 29% to Dfl 18m, of which Dfl 7m (39%) represented sales
of the new flexible universal life product launched in April.

In France, there was a 12% increase in new business over the year to
Ffr 161m EPI (1998: Ffr 144m).  New annual premiums - including group
protection business - increased 10% to Ffr 53m.  Life single premiums
grew 22% to Ffr 754m, with a particularly strong performance in the
final quarter which benefited from the launch of a new unit linked fund.


For further information contact:


Investors: Peter Horsman                   Media: Graham Rimmer
           Investor Relations Manager             Chief Press Officer
           0171 528 6362                          0171 528 6252


                                                  Anthony Carlisle
                                                  Citigate Dewe Rogerson
                                                  0171 638 9571

                      LEGAL & GENERAL GROUP PLC
                   UNAUDITED NEW BUSINESS PREMIUMS
                     YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 1999

NEW UK BUSINESS
===============

                              Year ended              Three months to
                              31 December             31 December
                             1999    1998    inc/    1999    1998   inc/
                                            (dec)                  (dec)
                              £m      £m       %      £m      £m      %


RETAIL LIFE AND
PENSIONS BUSINESS

New annual premiums
Life:
 - Mortgage related           107      71              30      22
 - Savings                      2       2               0       1
 - Protection                  17      19               4       5
Pensions:
 - Individual pensions         73      77              15      17
                              ---     ---     ---     ---     ---    ---
Total new annual premiums     199     169      18      49      45      9

Single premiums
Life:
 - With profits               448     274             106      76
 - Other                      186     172              36      50
Pensions:
 - Individual pensions        260     272              39      61
 - Annuities - individual     304     291              92      42
 - DSS rebates                120      45              33      34
                            -----   -----     ---     ---     ---    ---
Total single premiums       1,318   1,054      25     306     263     16


Retail life
and pensions EPI              331     274      21      80      71     13


CORPORATE LIFE AND
 PENSIONS BUSINESS

New annual premiums
 - Group risk                  24      20               6       4
 - Group pensions              11      13               6       3
                              ---     ---     ---     ---     ---    --- 
Total new annual premiums      35      33       6      12       7     71

Single premiums
 - Annuities -
   bulk purchase              573     258             235      46
 - Other group business        70      90              17      19
                              ---     ---     ---     ---     ---    ---
Total single premiums         643     348      85     252      65    288


Corporate life                ---     ---     ---     ---     ---    ---
 and pensions EPI              99      68      46      37      13    185


UNIT TRUSTS, PEPS AND ISAS
New annual premiums
 - PEPs/ISAs
   (excluding cash ISAs)       23      19              11       4

Single premiums
 - Unit trusts                276     154              66      33
 - PEPs/ISAs
   (excluding cash ISAs)      601     601              46      47

                              ---     ---     ---     ---     ---    ---
Unit trusts/PEPs/ISAs EPI     111      94      18      22      12     83


                              ---     ---     ---     ---     ---    ---
Total UK EPI                  541     436      24     139      96     45
                              ===     ===     ===     ===     ===    ===

                           ------  ------     ---   -----   -----    ---
PENSION FUND MANAGEMENT    13,098  11,322      16   3,950   4,360     (9)
                           ======  ======     ===   =====   =====    ===

                       LEGAL & GENERAL GROUP PLC
                    UNAUDITED NEW BUSINESS PREMIUMS
                      YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 1999

NEW BUSINESS FROM
CONTINUING OPERATIONS
=====================
                                   Year ended           Year ended
                                   31 December 1999     31 December 1998
                                 Annual   Single      Annual   Single
                                    £m       £m          £m       £m
LIFE AND PENSIONS
Life                                150      634         112      446
Pensions                             84    1,327          90      956
                                    ---    -----         ---    -----
UK                                  234    1,961         202    1,402
USA                                  63        1          34        5
Netherlands                           5       35           4       38
France                                5       71           5       66
                                    ---    -----         ---    -----
INSURANCE TOTAL                     307    2,068         245    1,511

RETAIL INVESTMENT BUSINESS

UK                                   23      877          19      755
France                                        31                   36
                                    ---    -----         ---    -----      
TOTAL NEW BUSINESS                  330    2,976         264    2,302
                                    ===    =====         ===    =====


OVERSEAS OPERATIONS 
IN LOCAL CURRENCY
=================
                                     Year ended
                                     31 December       inc/(dec)
                                   1999     1998          %
USA ($m):
New annual premiums                 101       56
Single premiums                       1        8

EPI                                 101       57          77

Netherlands (D.Fl.m):
New annual premiums                  18       14
Single premiums                     125      117

EPI                                  30       25          20

France (F.Fr.m):
New annual premiums                  53       48
Single premiums                     754      618
Unit trusts                         329      339

EPI                                 161      144          12



UK INDIVIDUAL EPI BY CHANNEL
============================
                                   Year ended 31 December 1999
                                 Annual   Single (10%)      Total EPI
                                    £m       £m           £m         %
Independent financial
  advisers                          107      144          251       57
Business partners                    52       10           62       14
Financial consultancy                36       19           55       12
Direct                               27       47           74       17
                                    ---      ---          ---      ---
Total                               222      220          442      100
                                    ===      ===          ===      ===

                                   Year ended 31 December 1998
                                 Annual  Single (10%)       Total EPI
                                    £m       £m           £m         %
Independent financial
  advisers                           80      111          191       52
Business partners                    45        7           52       14
Financial consultancy                40       15           55       15
Direct                               23       48           71       19
                                    ---      ---          ---      ---
Total                               188      181          369      100
                                    ===      ===          ===      ===