Sun Life release annual report and refresh executive team

Company maintains top rank in fixed annuities and critical illness markets

Sun Life release annual report and refresh executive team
Hot on the heels of announcing a shakeup to its executive team on Monday, Sun Life Financial released its 2016 Annual Report yesterday.

Key findings included net income growth of 14% to $2.5 billion, underlying return on equity increasing by 12.2%, and assets under management rising to $903 billion.

Such results did not mean the company was completely satisfied, however, as the reconfiguration of its executive team attests. Effective May 29, 2017, current president of Sun Life Financial Asia, Kevin Strain, will become executive vice-president and chief financial officer. Executive Vice-President and Chief Risk Officer Claude Accum will move in the opposite direction and assume the role of president, Sun Life Financial Asia.

Colm Freyne, executive vice-president and chief financial officer will become executive vice-president and chief risk officer, while former CEO of L.L.Bean Christopher McCormick, will join the company’s Board of Directors.

The newly constituted executive team will be tasked with maintaining Sun Life’s momentum across its four main pillars of Canada, US, Global Asset Management and Asia.

Sun Life’s Asian business has experienced huge growth in recent years, and has almost tripled in size since 2012. The firm’s backbone, its Canadian health and life insurance business, remains the major contributor to revenue, however.

In 2016, Sun Life retained its first place position in the fixed annuities and critical illness markets at 27.7% and 28.5% of market share, respectively.

The firm also maintained its second place position in the individual life market, with annualized premiums increasing by 9.5%. Insurance sales of $475 million in 2016 grew 36% over 2015.

Sun Life also kept pole position as the largest provider of employee benefit group insurance products in Canada for the seventh consecutive year.

This success meant that reported net income was $936 million in 2016, compared to $824 million in 2015, while operating net income was $941 million in 2016, compared to $803 million in 2015.

In his message to shareholders, Sun Life Financial President & CEO Dean Connor highlighted some of the changes the firm has made to drive business. 

“In Canada, we simplified the rules for individual life and critical illness insurance applications,” he said. “We no longer require any ECGs, reduced requirements for fluid samples in the majority of cases and loosened up on occasional cigar smoking. We also now offer life insurance coverage of more than $3 million to Canadians living with HIV.”


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