Foresters Financial Focuses on Growth of U.S. Fixed Life Insurance Business

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Jul 01, 2020, 13:00 ET

Exit from variable life and annuity business marks final chapter in divestment strategy

TORONTO, July 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Foresters Financial™ (Foresters) today finalized its previously announced sale of Foresters Financial Holding Company, Inc. and Foresters Life Insurance and Annuity Company (FLIAC), its New York-based variable life and annuity business, to Nassau Financial Group, L.P.

FLIAC was acquired by Foresters in 2011 with its entry into the asset management business through the purchase of First Investors. The sale represents Foresters exit of the First Investors businesses, following the 2019 sale of its asset manager and broker-dealer to Macquarie Group and Cetera Financial Group, respectively.

Consistent with the growth of this industry-leading, purpose-driven organization, the transaction marks the culmination of Foresters strategy to focus on fixed life insurance in the U.S. and Canada. Through independent agents, Foresters offers a suite of insurance products and unique, complimentary benefits aligned with Foresters fraternal purpose of helping others.

To date, Foresters fraternal life insurance business has been growing behind an expanding product suite of innovative Term Life, Universal Life, and Whole Life insurance products in the U.S. and Canada. Sales through May 2020 of the U.S. and Canadian fraternal insurance products have increased 5% over 2019.

Growth Strategy: Life Insurance With A Larger Purpose

Foresters concentrates on offering life insurance solutions to mass- and middle-market families, which are underserved by financial institutions in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. In the U.S. alone, these under-insured markets represent approximately 39 million households.

Foresters Financial President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Boyle, said, "Our strategy focuses on optimizing our strengths as a modern fraternal life insurance carrier. With the divestitures over the past year, our energies are fully devoted to driving the growth of our fixed life insurance business and taking advantage of being a purpose-driven fraternal organization. This includes creating innovative life insurance products and offering member benefits that enrich the lives of our members, their families and their communities."

Matt Berman, Chief Distribution Officer, added, "Independent agents we work with see our fraternal, purpose-driven approach as a powerful way to differentiate their business. They appreciate our focus on helping others, and the fact that our insurance comes with special benefits that empower their clients and their families to enjoy a more enriching life today – all while supporting the work they do in their communities. That's Life Insurance with a Larger Purpose; it sets Foresters apart and gives those we work with a real competitive advantage."

Member benefits¹include competitive academic scholarships, orphan benefits, and complimentary access to on-line wills and other important documents through LawAssure². Importantly, they also include opportunities for members to give back to their communities through local market activities such as playground builds, and especially through Community Involvement Grants. The most recent Foresters granting program is called Caring Through Crisis (CTC), which was created to help Foresters members provide local support to their community, while staying safe during the COVID-19 crisis.

About Foresters Financial
Since 1874, Foresters Financial has been providing socially responsible financial services to individuals and families. Foresters Financial includes The Independent Order of Foresters, the oldest non-denominational fraternal benefit society. Foresters is a purpose-driven organization that exists to enrich family and community well-being and offers insurance products to over three million members and clients in Canada, the US and the U.K. For 19 straight years, The Independent Order of Foresters has received an "A" (Excellent) rating from A.M. Best³. For more information please visit foresters.com

For information purposes only.

™Foresters Financial, Foresters, and Helping Is Who We Are are trade names and/or trademarks of The Independent Order of Foresters (a fraternal benefit society, 789 Don Mills Rd, Toronto, Canada M3C 1T9) and its subsidiaries. For more information, please visit MyForesters.com or foresters.com. To contact us, please call 800 828 1540 (toll-free) or email [email protected].

¹Foresters Financial member benefits are non-contractual, subject to benefit specific eligibility requirements, definitions and limitations and may be changed or cancelled without notice.

²LawAssure is provided by Epoq, Inc. Epoq is an independent service provider and is not affiliated with Foresters. Some features not available in Louisiana. LawAssure is not a legal service or legal advice and is not a substitute for legal advice or services of a lawyer.

³The A.M. Best rating assigned on August 14, 2019 reflects the overall strength and claims-paying ability of The Independent Order of Foresters (IOF) but does not apply to the performance of any non-IOF issued products. An "A" (Excellent) rating is assigned to companies that have a strong ability to meet their ongoing obligations to policyholders and have, on balance, excellent balance sheet strength, operating performance and business profile when compared to the standards established by A.M. Best Company. A.M. Best assigns ratings from A++ to F, A++ and A+ being superior ratings and A and A- being excellent ratings. See ambest.com for our latest rating.

SOURCE The Independent Order of Foresters