Standard Life
Assets £290bn Yield 4.4%
The Scottish referendum is over, so Standard Life can get on with business as usual, right? Well, not quite. Aside from the uncertainties thrown up by the prospect of devolution of powers to north of border, a work in progress, the Edinburgh-based insurer has plenty on its plate.
First, there is digesting Ignis, the asset management business that Standard Life bought from Phoenix Holdings for £390 million in March. That has added £60.9 billion of assets and bulked up the insurer’s ownership of closed life funds as desired.
Policies worth £700 million matured in the third quarter and, after staff departures, Ignis has suffered accelerating redemptions from its absolute return government bond fund.
The deal was clearly a smart