January 24, 2019
Willkie advised Protective, a subsidiary of Dai-ichi Life Holdings, Inc., on the acquisition, the largest in company history.
Protective Life Corporation, a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Dai-ichi Life Holdings, Inc. (TSE:8750), announced it has reached an agreement under which its subsidiaries, Protective Life Insurance Company and Protective Life & Annuity Insurance Company, will acquire via reinsurance substantially all of Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company’s individual life insurance and annuity business. The transaction represents an estimated capital investment by Protective of approximately $1.2 billion, subject to adjustment, and will be the largest acquisition in company history. It also marks Protective’s entrance into the executive benefits market.
The acquired business has been marketed under the Great-West Financial brand and includes bank-owned and corporate-owned life insurance, single premium life insurance, individual annuities, and a portion of Great-West’s closed block life insurance and annuities. Great-West will retain a block of participating policies, which will be administered by Protective.
When closed, this acquisition will be Protective’s 57th acquisition and its 50th life and annuity acquisition. It will be the fourth transaction completed since Protective became part of Dai-ichi in 2015. Dai-ichi considers Protective to be its North American growth platform and continues to aim for further expansion in the region, through both acquisitions and organic growth in Protective’s retail sales.
Headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, with nearly 3,000 employees across the U.S., Protective Life Corporation provides financial services through the production, distribution and administration of insurance and investment products throughout the U.S. As of September 30, 2018, Protective had assets of approximately $91.8 billion. Protective Life Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dai-ichi Life Holdings, Inc.
Established 125 years ago, Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company administers a total of $602 billion in assets for approximately 9.1 million retirement, insurance and annuity customers, as of Sept. 30, 2018.
In January 2018, Willkie advised Protective on a $3.3 billion multi-party deal to acquire Liberty Mutual’s individual life and annuity business. Willkie advised Dai-ichi Life in the $5.7 billion acquisition of Protective Life in June 2014.
The Willkie deal team was led by partners Alexander Dye and Rajab Abbassi and senior counsel Donald Henderson.
