HSBC Agrees to Sell UK Life Insurance Business to Chesnara

HSBC Holdings plc HSBC has agreed to sell its life insurance business in the U.K., HSBC Life (UK) Limited, to Chesnara, a life and pensions consolidator, for a cash consideration of £260 million. The completion of the deal, subject to customary regulatory approvals, is expected in early 2026.

Steve Murray, the CEO of Chesnara, stated, “The proposed acquisition of HSBC Life (UK) represents a material step up in scale for Chesnara Group. HSBC Life (UK) is a high-quality business operating in products that we know well and is capable, under our ownership, of generating substantial cash flows for many years. This highly accretive transaction will allow us to build on our strong, 20-year track record of uninterrupted dividend growth.”

Details of HSBC's Divestiture Deal

Chesnara expects the acquisition to generate incremental lifetime cash of more than £800 million, including above £140 million in the first five years following closure.

The acquisition of HSBC Life (UK) is the biggest to date for Chesnara and is expected to increase the latter’s assets under administration by £4 billion and add 454,000 policies to its U.K. operations.

Chesnara expects the transaction to increase its final fiscal 2025 and interim fiscal 2026 dividends by an adjusted 6%.

The £260-million consideration will be financed through a mix of £55 million in internal cash, a £65 million drawdown from Chesnara’s amended £150 million revolving credit facility, and gross proceeds of approximately £140 million from a fully underwritten rights issue.

Chesnara expects the deal to result in its inclusion in the FTSE 250 index.

HSBC Life Sale Aligns With Bank’s Simplification Efforts

HSBC’s move aligns with its broader repositioning strategy to streamline operations, focusing more on markets with strong growth potential, as highlighted by CEO Georges Elhedery in October 2024.

The sale of the life insurance business in the U.K. is, thus, the latest in a series of asset disposals by HSBC as the bank seeks to focus more on Asia.

A few days ago, HSBC’s subsidiary, HSBC Continental Europe, entered an agreement to sell its custody operations in Germany to BNP Paribas BNPQY. Although the financial terms of the agreement remain undisclosed, the deal will involve the complete transfer of HSBC Continental Europe’s custody operations in Germany, including all assets and its related clients, to BNP Paribas. Post-completion, both HSBC and BNP Paribas are committed to ensuring a smooth transition for clients and colleagues.

In March 2025, HSBC’s U.K. division announced the sale of its private client trust business — HSBC Trust Company (UK) Limited — to Ludlow Trust. Likewise, in December 2024, HSBC Continental Europe signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the sale of its French insurance arm, HSBC Assurances Vie (France), to Matmut Société d’Assurance Mutuelle.

HSBC is also progressing with divestments in South Africa and Bahrain. Apart from these, it has completed the sale of its businesses in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Greece, Russia, Argentina and Armenia, as well as the retail banking operations in France and Mauritius.

HSBC's Price Performance & Zack Rank

So far this year, HSBC shares have rallied 22.7% compared with the industry’s growth of 26.1%.

Currently, HSBC carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Divestitures by Other Finance Firms

In June 2025, Huntington Bancshares HBAN announced its decision to streamline operations by divesting the corporate trust and institutional custody business of its subsidiary, The Huntington National Bank (Huntington), to Argent Institutional Trust Company (“AITC”). The move reinforces the company’s commitment to enhancing its core financial offerings, positioning itself for greater efficiency and long-term profitability.

Post-completion, AITC and Huntington will maintain a strategic relationship, with Argent continuing to provide corporate trust, escrow and custody solutions to Huntington’s commercial banking clients.

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