The company is a rebranding of Met Life’s U.S. Retail Business
The Division of Insurance has announced that it has scheduled a public hearing on May 25, 2017 regarding the proposed acquisition and control of New England Life Insurance Company, a Massachusetts-domiciled stock life insurer.
An application for the proposed acquisition has been made jointly by Brighthouse Financial, Inc., a Delaware Corporation and Brighthouse Holdings, LLC a Delaware Limited Liability Company.
The acquisition is part of MetLife’s restructuring plan in the U.S.
The proposed acquisition of New England Life is part of the overall restructuring plan that MetLife, Inc. is undertaking within its U.S. retail operations. In July of 2016, MetLife announced the creation of Brighthouse Financial, as an independent standalone company, owning all of MetLife’s then existing U.S. retail life and annuity business. Brighthouse Financial focuses on life insurance and annuity sales and development in the United States.
As a result, part of that plan includes the acquisition of New England Life, which was acquired by MetLife back in 1995. Upon the approval of the proposed acquisition, Brighthouse Financial will become the ultimate parent company of New England Life.
Why the Division must approved the acquisition
Like the original acquisition of New England Life by MetLife, the Division of Insurance must approve the acquisition of the domiciled stock life insurer. Part of that approval process includes the holding of a public hearing pursuant to M.G.L. c. 175, §206B to determine whether or not to approve the proposed acquisition of control. The public hearing will also afford any persons with an interest (as identified in M.G.L. c. 175, §206B (d)(2)) “…the opportunity to exercise the rights identified as in that section.”
More details on how to attend or participate in the May hearing
For those individuals interested in participating in the hearing, the Division requests that a written Notice of Intent to Participate, which includes the statutory basis for said participation, is submitted by today, May 23, 2017. In addition, to including the statutory basis permitting participation in the hearing, the DOI also request that an individual include the proposed forms that he or she plans to use to participate (i.e. written or oral testimony).
The Division also has provided the following information on how to submit said Notice:
All submissions, including the Notice of Intent to Participate, must refer to Docket No. F2017-01 and may be sent either by post addressed to: Docket Clerk, Hearings and Appeals, Division of Insurance, 1000 Washington Street, Suite 810, Boston, Massachusetts 02118-6200, or by electronic mail to doidocket.mailbox@state.ma.us.
