(Oct 21): US insurer MetLife Inc is in advanced talks to buy PineBridge Investments’ assets outside of China, people familiar with the matter said, in a deal that could be valued at US$1 billion (RM4.3 billion) to US$1.5 billion.

The talks are exclusive for assets under management amounting to about US$100 billion, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. PineBridge is majority owned by Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li’s holding company, Pacific Century Group (PCG). 

MetLife has emerged as the most likely buyer after outbidding rivals including other asset managers and financial institutions, the people said. The exclusivity period will allow the New York-based insurer to finalise details of a potential agreement over the coming weeks, they said.

Li’s PCG has been considering a sale of PineBridge, excluding a China joint-venture with Huatai Securities Co, the people said. The Huatai-PineBridge venture managed more than US$70 billion in assets as of the end of June, according to its website. 

While the sale process is at an advanced stage, deliberations are ongoing and no final decisions have been made, the people said.

Representatives for MetLife, PineBridge and its owner PCG declined to comment.

PCG bought PineBridge from American International Group Inc for US$500 million in 2010 as the insurer was selling assets to repay a government bailout. PineBridge’s clients include pension plans, insurance companies, official institutions, private banks, advisers and intermediaries.

A purchase of PineBridge’s non-China assets could boost MetLife’s roughly US$175 billion of current client investment assets by more than 50%, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Jeffrey Flynn wrote in a note on Monday. The deal value would align with MetLife’s focus on less capital-intensive areas to support its rising return on equity, Flynn said.

MetLife shares were down 0.5% to US$84.86 at 10.10am on Monday in New York. They have climbed 28% this year, giving the company a market value of about US$59 billion.

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