Sun Life to buy Assurant benefits unit

(Bloomberg) -- Sun Life Financial Inc., Canada’s third-largest life insurer, agreed to buy an employee-benefits business from Assurant Inc. to expand in the U.S.

Assurant will receive $940 million in the sale, the New York-based company said in a statement Wednesday. Sun Life said in a separate statement that its net investment will be $975 million, a sum that includes capital required to support the operation.

Sun Life Chief Executive Officer Dean Connor is expanding beyond Canada as Assurant turns its focus to property-casualty coverage, including policies that protect consumer electronics and homes. He agreed in June to buy Redmond, Washington-based asset manager Prime Advisors.

“The acquisition of the Assurant employee benefits business is directly on strategy, accelerating the growth of our U.S. group benefits business,” Connor said in the statement.

 

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
Voluntary benefits Disability insurance Dental insurance
MORE FROM EMPLOYEE BENEFIT NEWS