(September 16 – 13:30 ET) –
Canada Life Assurance Co.
policyholders have voted in favour
of demutualization. At the Toronto-
based insurer’s special
policyholder meeting today, just
under 92% of eligible policyholders
who cast ballots favoured the
firm’s plans to go public.

Despite some dissenting opinions
from the audience, the vote to
change from a mutually held insurer
to a publicly held one went
smoothly.

Canada Life hopes to be listed
on stock markets by the end of
October. Initially, the stock of
Canada Life Financial will trade
on the Toronto and Montreal
exchanges. There is a possibility
shares will trade in New York next
year.

Canada Life had been a publicly
held company until the early
1960s, when the fear of foreign
ownership led it to become a mutual
insurer.

-IE Staff