Sun Life buys 49% of Grepalife

The local unit of Canadian insurer Sun Life Financial has acquired 49 percent of the Yuchengco family’s insurance unit Grepalife Financial Inc. and assumed management control of the resulting joint-venture company.

Sun Life declined, however, to reveal the acquisition price for the Grepalife stake, which it acquired from GPL Holdings Inc.

“Grepalife will rebrand itself as Sun Life Grepa Financial and launch new products under this name,” the company said in a statement issued Tuesday.

It added that Grepalife—under the Sun Life Grepa Financial name—would continue with its exclusive bancassurance agreement with Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., giving the Yuchengco-owned bank’s two million customer base access to new Sun Life Grepa Financial insurance products.

“We’re very pleased about forming this joint venture between two strong companies that both focus on delivering the best for our customers,” Sun Life Financial Philippines president and CEO Riza Mantaring said.

“We welcome this new acquisition and bancassurance alliance with enthusiasm as it allows us to serve more Filipinos and promises to bring us growth in our business,” she added.

The statement said that the Yuchengco family also expressed their confidence and optimism for the agreement.

“This joint venture will allow us to offer a wider range of insurance products to better address our customers’ needs for protection and financial security,” RCBC chairperson Helen Y. Dee said. “The joint venture will be able to leverage and complement the strengths of our combined brands.”

“We have full confidence in the leadership of the new organization, and wish them every success,” she added.

The company said that Sun Life Grepa Financial would be led by Naresh Krishnan as president and CEO. Krishnan was formerly chief operating officer of Sun Life Financial Philippines, where he oversaw its distribution channels and mutual funds business lines.