Standard Life
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- See also: Standard Life (Canada)
| Standard Life plc | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Type | Public (LSE: SL.) |
| Founded | 1825 |
| Headquarters | Edinburgh, Scotland, UK |
| Key people | Gerry Grimstone, Chairman Sandy Crombie, CEO |
| Industry | Financial services |
| Revenue | £10,113 million (2007) |
| Operating income | £714 million (2007) |
| Net income | £725 million (2007) |
| Employees | 8,500 [1] |
| Website | www.standardlife.com |
Standard Life plc (LSE: SL.) is a financial services institution based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Formerly a mutual society, since September 15, 2006, the company has been a publicly listed constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Standard Life plc acts as a holding company for the areas within Standard Life. Since demutualisation, the company structure is quite complex. [2]
Standard Life has in excess of seven million customers worldwide, with five million in the United Kingdom. Of these, 2.6 million are with profits members of the mutual. There are 8,500 UK-based employees.[1]
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[edit] History
The Standard Life Assurance Company ("Standard Life") was established in 1825 and the first Standard Life Assurance Company Act was passed by Parliament in 1832. Standard Life was reincorporated as a mutual assurance company in 1925.
The Standard Life group originally operated only through branches or agencies of the mutual company in the United Kingdom and certain other countries. Its Canadian branch was founded in 1833 and its Irish operations in 1838. This largely remained the structure of the group until 1996, when it opened a branch in Frankfurt, Germany with the aim of exporting its UK life assurance and pensions operating model to capitalise on the opportunities presented by EC Directive 92/96/EEC (the “Third Life Directive”) and offer a product range in that market with features which local providers were unable to offer. In the 1990s, the group also sought to diversify its operations into areas which complemented its core life assurance and pensions business, with the intention of positioning itself as a broad range financial services provider.
On 31 May 2006, Standard Life's voting members voted in favour of the Special Resolution for the demutualisation of The Standard Life Assurance Company and the flotation of Standard Life plc on the London Stock Exchange.
[edit] Controversy
In January 2006, Standard Life were accused of smearing a policy-holder, Michael Hogan, who was not happy with the way the company was being run. An e-mail sent to Standard Life executives and advisors (which was disclosed under the Data Protection Act) revealed an attempt to discredit him.[3]
In January 2007, the head of Standard Life's life and pensions business, Trevor Matthews, used the phrase "nigger in the woodpile" while giving a presentation at one of the company's Edinburgh offices. After issuing an apology, Mr Matthews remained in his job and no disciplinary action was taken. [4]
In March 2007 the company announced it would cut 1,000 jobs in an attempt to save an additional £100 million per year in costs[1]. One month later it was highlighted in the company's annual report that three of Standard Life's top executives (Sandy Crombie, Keith Skeoch and Trevor Matthews) were awarded more than £5 million in pay.[5] A Standard Life spokesman defended the awards, citing the leadership's efforts in turning round the company's fortunes.[5]
In May 2007, Standard Life sent numerous policy documents out to the wrong customers. Up to 300 people had their personal and financial details made public, causing fears of identity theft.[6] The company pledged to step up security procedures after the error.[6]
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