Is Asteron for sale?
Reports out of Australia say that Suncorp is looking to sell its New Zealand life insurance business, Asteron Life.
Thursday, April 7th 2022, 9:17AM 
1 Comment
The Australian says that Suncorp is understood to have appointed investment bank UBS to look at the sale of Asteron Life.
Queensland-based Suncorp also owns general insurer Vero as well as AA Life in New Zealand.
The Australian says sources believe that Asteron Life may have a value of about $300 million.
Asteron is one of the companies not to acquire a bank life business in recent years. AIA acquired ASB's Sovereign, nib recently bought Kiwibank's life business, Fidelity Life has just settled the Westpac Life acquisition and Partners Life is still working through the acquisition of BNZ Life.
Suncorp sold its Australian life insurance operations in 2018 to Japanese financial giant Dai-ichi for A$725 million.
Other Japanese firms were underbidders for the business, including MS&AD and Meiji Yasuda.
Asteron Life added $10 million of new in-force premium business in the past year, but its overall profit was hammered.
The company said, earlier this year, its annual profit after tax of $6 million was down 79.3% compared to the previous year.
It blames the fall on significantly lower investment returns and higher claims experience compared with the prior period.
READ ON: The results are in for Asteron Life
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The CIGNA sale to Chubb seems to deliver a good market outcome as the proposal appears to maintain competition with a serious player open to new business.
One hopes the outcome is Asteron remains as a stand alone player providing choice to consumers and advisers.