MetLife Inc. announced Friday that it is no longer considering selling its 51% stake in Reinsurance Group of America Inc. to help fund its planned purchase of Citigroup's Travelers Life and Annuity business.
MetLife had said in January that it would consider financing up to $3 billion of its $11.5 billion Travelers deal with asset sales, possibly including its stake in RGA. The huge life insurer has since agreed to sell assets, including some prime Manhattan real estate, and decided that such alternatives would let it meet its f unding goal without divesting its interest in the reinsurer.
Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, MetLife is a leading provider of insurance and other financial services to individual and institutional customers. It has about 13 million customer households in the United States and provides benefits to 37 million employees and family members through plan sponsors. MetLife companies also have about nine million customers in 12 markets overseas.
