Australia’s AMP exits life insurance with $389 mln stake sale


FILE PHOTO: The logo of AMP Ltd, Australia’s biggest retail wealth manager, adorns their head office located in central Sydney, Australia, May 5, 2017. REUTERS/David Gray

(Reuters) – Australia’s AMP Ltd (AMP.AX) said on Wednesday it had agreed to sell its remaining 19% stake in Resolution Life’s Australia business to the British company, marking the wealth manager’s exit from life insurance.

The stake sale will fetch AMP A$524 million ($389.28 million) and comes years after the Australian company agreed to offload its life insurance arm to Resolution Life at a discounted price of A$3 billion.

At the time, AMP had decided to receive some of the deal consideration in the form of a stake in the business.

AMP said the sale would boost its available capital by A$459 million, ahead of plans to spin off its asset management arm’s private markets business in the first half of next year.

Resolution Life and AMP have also agreed to settle other post-deal adjustments and claims that would see the Australian company make a net payment of A$141 million.

AMP will take a A$65 million one-off hit in fiscal 2021 following the payment.