Suncorp offloads life business for $725m

The result of the review is that Suncorp has signed a non-binding heads of agreement with TAL Dai-ichi Life Australia.

The business will be sold for a forecast consideration of $725 million, with a forecast capital return of approximately $600 million.

The sale will include the Suncorp Life & Superannuation Ltd, the Australian Life Risk division and “participating businesses via sale of shares”.

Commenting on the acquisition, TAL chief executive Brett Clark said: “This transaction will significantly expand TAL’s market leading presence in Australia and will provide exciting opportunities for us with additional trusted and recognised brands, and a broader group of financial advisers.”

“This acquisition will enhance TAL’s scale and capability across the retail, group and direct segments, and will open up important new distribution channels.

“It will provide us with a strong base for continued growth and reflects our ongoing commitment to offering Australians a range of life insurance options to meet their diverse needs,” Mr Clark said.

Suncorp’s full-year 2018 (FY18) financial results showed 6.2 per cent growth in home lending in the year to June 2018, despite “moderated” growth in the second half of FY18 “in response to market conditions”.

The lender’s mortgage portfolio rose to $47.6 billion, up from $44.8 billion in FY17, with Suncorp noting that the growth was 1.2 times above system.

In a briefing to investors, Suncorp CEO Michael Cameron said the results were positive given “high levels of competition, aggressive pricing across the industry, and slowing system growth”. 

[Related: Bank bolsters mortgage portfolio by $2.8bn]