Aviva to hand investors at least £4b following asset sales

London

AVIVA plans to return at least £4 billion (S$7.5 billion) to investors using proceeds from the recent sale of non-core businesses.

The UK-based insurer and asset manager will start with an immediate £750 million share buyback, and the balance will be returned to investors by the end of the first half of 2022, Aviva said in an earnings statement on Thursday. Aviva's shares rose as much as 3.7 per cent in early Thursday trading in London.

"We are delivering on our commitment to make a substantial capital return to our shareholders," chief executive officer Amanda Blanc said in the statement. The company will provide further details about the payout in March next year, she added.

Since joining Aviva just over a year ago, Ms Blanc has focused the firm on its UK, Ireland and Canada businesses while selling off eight units in other markets. The firm has retained operations in China, India and Singapore.

While Aviva had previously flagged the proposed return to shareholders, the company has recently been targeted by an activist investor seeking higher payouts. Sweden-based Cevian Capital AB revealed in June that it owned a stake of around 5 per cent and said it would push for bigger cost cuts and investor returns.

The payout marks Ms Blanc's commitment to move at pace to overhaul the insurer after years of lacklustre returns.

Shares have risen about 50 per cent since she took the reins in July 2020 as the firm steadily raised some £7.5 billion from its divestment programme. Aviva will also use those proceeds to pay down debt.

Aviva posted a drop in first-half operating profit to £1.1 billion versus £1.2 billion a year earlier.

The firm's investment unit saw net inflows of £829 million, taking total assets under management to around £260 billion. BLOOMBERG