Sale of Quilter Life Assurance to ReAssure

RNS Number : 8218H

Quilter PLC

05 August 2019

 

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THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

5 August 2019

Quilter plc ("Quilter") announces the sale of Quilter Life Assurance to ReAssure for £425m

·          Following the strategic review, announced on 4 July 2019, Quilter and ReAssure are pleased to announce they have entered into an agreement for ReAssure to acquire Quilter's heritage life and pensions division, Old Mutual Wealth Life Assurance Limited ("Quilter Life Assurance") (the "Transaction").

·          Under the terms of the Transaction, Quilter plc is expected to receive:

£425m, in cash.

·          The sale of Quilter Life Assurance will further act to solidify Quilter's position as an advice led, modern wealth manager.

·          The Transaction realises an attractive valuation for Quilter Life Assurance, strengthening the Group's financial position.

·          Consistent with its disciplined capital management policy, and in line with previous disposals, the Board currently expects to return a meaningful proportion of the net sale proceeds, after allowance for the costs of the Transaction, potential onerous contracts and capital requirements of Quilter following the Transaction.

·          Quilter will update on the amount and method of distribution at the closing of the transaction, expected to be late 2019.

·          The growth profile of the Group following the sale is expected to be enhanced since Quilter Life Assurance is in run-off. Further benefits of the Transaction include increased focus on the delivery of Quilter's growth strategy and the execution of its optimisation initiatives.

·          ReAssure is a leading closed life book consolidator focused on managing legacy life insurance products. They are a customer oriented organisation with a strong focus on delivering good policyholder outcomes and have a track record of high customer satisfaction.

·          The Transaction is subject to receiving regulatory approvals from the PRA.

Commenting on the Transaction, Paul Feeney, Chief Executive Officer of Quilter, said:

"I am delighted we have agreed to sell Quilter Life Assurance to ReAssure. ReAssure is a highly regarded manager of closed book assets and has the experience to deliver continued high quality investment and administration services to clients of Quilter Life Assurance. The Quilter Board is currently minded to return a meaningful proportion of the net surplus proceeds arising from the transaction to shareholders and will consult with them on the most appropriate means of undertaking this."

Further information on Quilter Life Assurance

Quilter Life Assurance, a wholly owned subsidiary of Quilter, is a substantially closed book of unit-linked policies. Formerly the core of Quilter's UK business, Quilter Life Assurance consists of pensions, investment and savings, and protection products with both Retail and Institutional offerings. Quilter Life Assurance key financials include:

·    Proforma MCEV: £406 million at end 2018 after dividend payments made in 2019 of £130 million.

·    Proforma own funds of £354 million at end 2018 after dividend payments made in 2019 of £130 million.

·    Gross assets: £12,324 million at end June 2019.

·    Operating PBT: £26 million for the six months to end June 2019.

All current Quilter Executive Committee members will remain with Quilter post transaction.

Enquiries:

Quilter
John-Paul Crutchley - Head of Investor Relations Jane Goodland - Corporate Affairs Director Tim Skelton-Smith - Corporate Affairs	Tel: [phone] Tel: [phone] Tel: [phone]
ReAssure
Laura Doyle - Head of Investor Relations	Tel: [phone]

About Quilter plc:

Quilter plc is a leading wealth management business in the UK and internationally, helping to create prosperity for the generations of today and tomorrow.

Quilter plc oversees £118.4 billion in investments (as at 30 June 2019).

It has an adviser and customer offering spanning: financial advice; investment platforms; multi-asset investment solutions; and discretionary fund management.

The business is comprised of two segments: Advice and Wealth Management and Wealth Platforms.

Advice and Wealth Management encompasses the financial planning network, Quilter Financial Planning; Quilter Private Client Advisers; the discretionary fund management business, Quilter Cheviot; and Quilter Investors, the Multi-asset investment solutions business. Wealth Platforms includes the Old Mutual Wealth UK Platform; Old Mutual International, including AAM Advisory in Singapore; and Old Mutual Wealth Life Assurance, the Heritage life assurance business.

The Quilter plc businesses are being re-branded to Quilter over a period of approximately two years:

• The Multi-asset business is now Quilter Investors

• Intrinsic is now Quilter Financial Planning

• The private client advisers business is now Quilter Private Client Advisers

• The UK Platform to Quilter Wealth Solutions

• The International business to Quilter International

• The Heritage life assurance business to Quilter Life Assurance

• Quilter Cheviot will retain its name.

 

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