Linklaters advised Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company (Meiji Yasuda) on its 100% acquisition of US insurance entity, Legal & General America Inc, and its US protection and pension risk transfer (PRT) business from UK-listed multinational insurance and financial services parent company Legal & General Group plc (L&G), for a combined equity value of US$2.3bn payable in cash at completion.
Concurrently, Meiji Yasuda has acquired an approximate 5% shareholding in L&G, as part of a strategic partnership regarding the US PRT and asset management businesses.
Following completion, Meiji Yasuda will wholly-own L&G’s US protection business and have a 20% economic interest in its US PRT business, with L&G retaining the remaining 80%.
The Linklaters multi-disciplinary and cross-jurisdictional team was led by global co-heads of the insurance sector Tracy Whiriskey (Tokyo-based) and Duncan Barber (London-based) as well as corporate partner Yoshiyuki Asaoka (Tokyo-based).
Specialist expertise was provided by teams based in Tokyo, Washington D.C., New York, Hong Kong SAR and London including capital markets partners Motoyasu Fujita and Kenneth Lam, antitrust & foreign investment senior counsel Jonathan Gafni, and partners John Eichlin and Marcus Pollard, as well as financial regulation partner Alastair Holt on this transaction.
Corporate partner and co-head of Linklaters’ global insurance sector Tracy Whiriskey commented:
“It has been a great honour to advise on this transformational deal, and we are grateful to Meiji Yasuda for their trust and support. This deal showcases our unique offering in public and private M&A and our insurance transactional and regulatory expertise for cross border transactions. It also highlights Linklaters’ global footprint and full-service capabilities in complex cross-border M&A matters. Our seamless collaboration across multiple legal jurisdictions underscores our ability to support a leading insurance company in Japanese and under Japanese and international laws.”
