Lucida PLC

Lucida to Partner with Bank of Ireland Life

Jan 01 2008

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Lucida to partner with Bank of Ireland Life in annuity reinsurance deal.

Lucida plc, a new insurance company formed to take on longevity risk and corporate pension schemes, today announces a deal with Bank of Ireland Life, one of Ireland’s leading insurance companies, to reinsure over EURO 100 million of its existing immediate annuity business plus the majority of the future annuity business written by the Irish company, estimated to be worth a further EURO 40 million a year.

Jonathan Bloomer, Executive Chairman of Lucida, commented, “We are delighted that Bank of Ireland Life has chosen to partner with us for the long term. This exciting deal demonstrates our ability to offer innovative solutions and to work in partnership with leading insurers. We are looking forward to working alongside Bank of Ireland Life in the Irish annuity market.” Sean Casey, Finance Director of Bank of Ireland Life, said, “From the outset we had very clear objectives: to secure an arrangement to enhance our competitiveness in the Irish market, and to control the risks in our annuity business. Our partnership with Lucida was a key element in our decision. They demonstrated an ability to work alongside us and be responsive to our requirements. We believe this is an excellent outcome for both our companies and we are very pleased to be working with Lucida on this deal.”Guy Carpenter and Company, the risk and reinsurance specialist of Marsh & McLennan Companies, advised Bank of Ireland Life throughout and assisted the process from initial discussions to final negotiations.

About Lucida

Lucida plc is a new company created specifically to focus on annuity and longevity risk business, including the defined benefit pension buy-out market and the market for bulk annuities. Lucida was founded by Jonathan Bloomer, Christopher Wales and David Clinton. Information about the management team and the company’s business philosophy can be found on our website: www.lucidaplc.com.

Lucida is backed by Cerberus Capital Management L.P., one of the largest groups of funds in the world with more than US$25 billion of equity funds currently under management. Lucida plc is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (“FSA”).

About Bank of Ireland

LifeBank of Ireland Life is a trading name of New Ireland Assurance Company plc, and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Bank of Ireland Group. Bank of Ireland is a diversified financial services group with broadly based leading market positions in Ireland, well-established operations in the UK and a growing portfolio of niche skill-based businesses internationally. The Group has three main operating divisions: Retail Financial Services Ireland incorporating Personal Banking, Business Banking and Wealth Management services; Capital Markets including Corporate Banking, Global Markets, Asset Management Services and IBI Corporate Finance; and UK Financial Services with a Mortgage Business, Business Banking and Consumer Financial Services through a joint venture with the UK Post Office. The company is listed on the Dublin, London and New York Stock Exchanges.

 

For further information, please contact:

Margaret Snowdon, Operations Director Lucida plc: +44 207 647 1610

Dominic Fry/Tom Murray, Tulchan Communications: +44 207 353 4200

Sean Casey, Finance Director, Bank of Ireland Life: +353 1 6172540