NEWARK, N.J. — Prudential Financial, Inc. announced today that Prudential Retirement has reached a definitive agreement with Union Bank of California, N.A., to acquire a portion of the bank's retirement book of business and add the firm's Highmark(R) mutual funds to its investment offerings for retirement plan sponsors and their participants. Prudential Retirement is a business of Prudential Financial, Inc.
"This acquisition underscores Prudential's commitment to market leadership in the retirement business and expands our overall presence on the West Coast, an important and growing retirement market," said Christine Marcks, president of Prudential Retirement.
The transaction will also enable Prudential to build and enhance its relationships with Union Bank's bankers, who will be able to offer Prudential Retirement products and services to their institutional banking customers.
"It also adds significant scale to our product-and-service platforms, helping us to continue to develop and deliver retirement-planning solutions that help our clients succeed and help plan participants build and achieve a more secure retirement," Marcks added.
Under terms of the agreement, Prudential will pay $103 million for Union Bank's book of retirement business, comprising approximately 670 plans, representing nearly 170,000 participants and approximately $8 billion in account values.
The companies expect to close the transaction in the fourth quarter of 2007 and complete the transition of the acquired retirement plans by June 30, 2008. Consummation of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.
