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Legal & General invests in Australian lifetime mortgage business
Legal & General has today announced it has acquired a 20 per cent stake in the Australian lifetime mortgage business Household Capital through its Retail Retirement division (LGRR).
10 Mar 2020
Household Capital is a specialist retirement funding provider which offers long-term access to home equity, and is committed to helping retired Australians ‘Live Well At Home’, creating a balance between lifetime savings and at-retirement pension income. Unlocking housing equity can help top-up pension plans, increase retirement income, fund social care and support the transition to retirement.
Legal & General’s strategic investment - the largest in the Melbourne based company’s Series B funding round and its first by a non-domestic, multi-national investor - will be used to underpin Household Capital’s corporate growth and build on the early success that the business has had since launching in 2017.
Legal & General - a leading provider of insurance, annuities and lifetime mortgages in the UK and a global asset manager with close to £1.2 trillion in assets under management - is dedicated to helping institutions and individuals in all phases of pension and retirement planning. Household Capital will benefit from this deep understanding of retirement markets, asset management and market leading experience of equity release and product innovation.
Household Capital’s focus on home equity funding, in the context of pensions, superannuation and other relevant aspects of the universal retirement opportunity, is closely aligned with Legal & General’s philosophy of innovation and commitment to helping customers better understand their pension saving and retirement income options.
Legal & General’s expertise, combined with Household Capital’s strong digital offering, local market knowledge and innovative wholesale debt structure, will help the company continue to meet its growth objectives, providing retired Australian homeowners with solutions that are better able to meet their increasingly complex retirement funding needs.
Chris Knight, Chief Executive Officer, Legal & General Retail Retirement: "This is a great opportunity to invest in a dynamic business, in a market with lots of potential. It reflects our commitment to improving the opportunities available to everyone at retirement, regardless of where they may be, so that they can live longer, healthier and happier lives. The Australian equity release market is extremely promising, with Household Capital at the forefront of developing innovative funding options for retirees.We’re looking forward to working together to help grow the scale of the business so that consumers have better options at this critical life stage."
Joshua Funder, Chief Executive Officer, Household Capital: "Legal & General’s strategic investment shows when it comes to tackling the challenge of our burgeoning retirement-age population, global investors see Australia as a significant market opportunity. We’re excited to have an investor on board who recognises that Household Capital is an innovator in home equity retirement funding with a clear values-based focus on customer outcomes."
Nick Sherry, Chair, Household Capital and former Australian federal Minister for Superannuation: "It is a myth that Australians downsize. They want to continue to live in their homes and in their community. Drawing down part of the capital in their household can help many retirees achieve their objectives and maintain a good lifestyle. Our investors know that growth in home equity retirement funding is not only necessary – it’s inevitable."
Further information
Millie Hyde-Smith
Director of PR and Content
Legal & General Retail
Maddy Morgan-Williams
Lansons
T: +44 7947 364 578
Notes to editors
Established in 1836, Legal & General is one of the UK’s leading financial services groups and a major global investor, with £1.2 trillion in total assets under management (as at FY23) of which c40% (circa £0.5 trillion) is international.
We have a highly synergistic business model, which continues to drive strong returns. We are a leading international player in Institutional Retirement, in Retail Savings and Protection, and in both public and private markets through our Asset Management division. Across the Group, we are committed to responsible investing and dedicated to serving the long-term savings and investment needs of customers and society.
As at 7 June 2024, we estimate the Group’s Solvency II coverage ratio to be 224%.
As at 11 June 2024, Legal & General has a market capitalisation of £14.6 billion.
Legal & General Retail Retirement’s mission is to help its customers lead longer, healthier, happier lives. We believe everyone should be able to have a ‘more colourful retirement’. The Division comprises the Group’s retirement savings and income, later life lending and care solutions businesses. In 2020, LGRR wrote £910 million of annuity premiums and issued £791 million of lifetime and retirement interest only mortgages.
*at 31 Jun 2021