(December 14 – 14:00 ET) – Manulife Financial and Zurich Canada have signed an agreement that will see Manulife acquire Zurich’s group life and health employee benefits business. In addition to the purchase, Zurich and Manulife will enter a distribution agreement.

Under the agreement, subject to regulatory approvals, Manulife will buy Zurich’s group life and health employee benefits business in a deal expected to close around March 31, 2001. A purchase price was not disclosed.

“This agreement will add a significant amount of high-quality, small-employer business to Manulife’s group business in Canada, while also opening doors for both companies to reach a much broader audience with our products,” says Trevor Matthews, Manulife’s executive vice president of Canadian operations.

“The sale of this block of business is in line with our strategy to focus on our businesses where we can develop a sustainable competitive advantage,” says Barry Gilway, president and CEO of Zurich Canada.

Zurich and Manulife will also enter a unique distribution agreement to offer selected lines of their products to each other’s distributors and customers in Canada.

Both companies expect their clients to benefit from their alliance. Zurich will distribute Manulife group life and health insurance products, as well as group registered retirement savings plans, to Zurich customers through its brokers, while Manulife will distribute Zurich property and casualty products to its group clients.

Zurich staff in its group life and health business will become Manulife employees upon the deal’s close. The transition of the business to Manulife’s environment over the next 12 to 18 months is designed to be gradual and reflects a transfer of business to Manulife’s systems primarily upon renewal of each policy.
-IE Staff