Singapore Life Holdings Pte Ltd (Singlife), an insurance company, announced that it has become a fully owned subsidiary of Sumitomo Life Insurance Company (Sumitomo Life), a company based in Japan.
In a statement, Singlife stated that the transaction, which was announced on December 22, 2023, and values Singlife at SGD 4.6 billion ($3.44 billion), has been approved by regulators in Singapore and Japan.
The agreement strengthens Sumitomo Life’s ties to Singapore and expands on its 2019 initial investment in Singlife.
Singapore will play a major role in Sumitomo Life’s Asian expansion plan.
“It has been a remarkable journey getting to where we are today. We have grown from strength to strength since Sumitomo Life’s first investment in Singlife in 2019, through Singlife’s merger with Aviva Singapore till today.
“The deal shows Sumitomo Life’s strong confidence in what we have done and in our long-term plans,” Singlife Chairman, Ray Ferguson said.
The ownership transition, according to the statement, won’t have an impact on Singlife’s business operations, name, brand, management group, or merchandise.
With the funds to support its regional expansion and development into an integrated financial services business, it will allow Singlife to pursue its long-term growth goals.
“As a wholly owned subsidiary of Sumitomo Life, we will have the means to expand and fulfill our ambition to offer customers an omni-channel tech-enabled, holistic proposition,” Singlife Group Chief Executive Officer, Pearlyn Phau said.
“We will continue to build products and services to meet their protection needs and offer retirement and wealth solutions that further their wellbeing and address their protection gaps,
“I believe we can leverage the combined strengths of Singlife and Sumitomo Life to deliver exceptional financial planning solutions across Asia,” he added.
With total assets of SGD 14.4 billion ($10.67 billion) as of December 31, 2022, Singlife is among the top six insurers in Singapore.
Singlife had the greatest year-over-year asset growth of 6.91 percent in 2022 among Singapore’s top ten insurers.
Japan’s first mutual life insurance company, Sumitomo Life Insurance Company, was established in 1907 and has its main office in Osaka.
