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Canadian Premier Life, CRI Canada Positioned for Growth with Securian AcquisitionLife insurer ivari has signed a definitive agreement with Securian Financial Group to sell its affiliate companies that are leading providers and distributors of insurance products to Canadian banks, credit unions and retailers. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161101006342/en/ 
Christopher M. Hilger, President and Chief Executive Officer, Securian Financial Group (Photo: Business Wire) The businesses to be sold by ivari include insurance manufacturers Canadian Premier Life Insurance Company and Legacy General Insurance Company, distributor CRI Canada, and Selient, which provides customized loan and insurance point-of-sale technologies to Canadian credit unions. The businesses will remain in Canada as independently operated affiliates of Securian Financial Group, which is headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota (USA). Nicole Benson, who has led the businesses since 2005, will be chief executive officer. "This is an exciting growth opportunity not only for Canadian Premier Life and CRI (News - Alert) Canada, but also for banks, credit unions and retailers throughout Canada," said Benson. "We are retaining our vision and operational independence, but will be able to utilize Securian's expertise in distributing both proprietary and non-proprietary products-giving our financial institution and retail clients more options to meet their customers' needs." Through the transaction with ivari, Securianis acquiring businesses with:
"ivari's goal is to better position the company, our advisors and their distributors for meaningful and sustainable growth in the sale and service of individual insurance products," said Doug Brooks, ivari's president and chief executive officer. "We are confident that Securian is the right company to help grow Canadian Premier Life and CRI Canada and provide reliable service to their financial institution and retail customers." Securian has offered loan-protection products through financial institutions in the United States since 1951. In the past 15 years, Securian has made over a dozen growth acquisitions in the United States financial institution market, including Cherokee National Life Insurance Company, Balboa Life Insurance Company, American Modern Life Insurance Company, and Allied Solutions-one of the largest distributors of products and services to credit unions. Today, Securian is among the leaders in the U.S. financial institution insurance market, offering a wide variety of proprietary and non-proprietary products and services to nearly 4,000 financial institutions. "We have been impressed by the Canadian financial institution market for some time, so we are thrilled to make an entry with the acquisition of these strong companies," said Chris Hilger, Securian's president and chief executive officer. "Canada has a bright, vibrant future. We are proud to expand beyond the United States for the first time to be part of it." The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods represented Securian in the transaction and Scotiabank represented ivari. ABOUT SECURIAN FINANCIAL GROUP Since 1880, Securian Financial Group and its affiliates have provided financial security for individuals and businesses in the form of insurance, investments and retirement plans. Now one of the United States' largest financial services providers, Securian is the holding company parent of a group of companies that offer a broad range of financial services. Securian is the ninth largest insurance company in the United States based on 2015 direct life insurance business in force.* As of December 31, 2015, Securian had $1.15 trillion of insurance in force, $64.4 billion in assets under management and nearly 16 million customers. Securian ranks among the most highly rated insurance company groups in the United States. For more information about the rating agencies and to see where Securian's ratings rank compared to other ratings, please visit www.securian.com/ratings. *A.M. Best's Statistical Study, U.S. Total Life, July 4, 2016. Based on 2015 total life insurance business in force. Excludes insurance companies who are primarily reinsurers. ABOUT ivari Transamerica (News - Alert) Life Canada's name recently changed to ivari. With a national network of thousands of independent advisors, ivari provides a full range of insurance products designed to help Canadians and their families make the right choice for their protection needs. The people, products and service that make up ivari have stood the test of time and have been around for over 80 years in the Canadian marketplace. We are starting a fresh, new conversation about insurance. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161101006342/en/ |
