British Pru Unit To Acquire ING Subsidiary

Jackson National has been best known in the United States as a seller of annuities but recently has been trying to boost life insurance sales. The company, a unit of Prudential P.L.C., London, reported $323 million in net income for 2003 on $3 billion in revenue.

Moody’s Investors Service, New York, reacted to the announcement of the deal by placing the A3 insurance financial strength rating it has awarded Life of Georgia on review for possible upgrade.

Moody’s current Life of Georgia rating “reflects the rating agency’s belief that Life of Georgia is not a core holding for ING,” the rating agency says.

Because Moody’s analysts believed that Life of Georgia was on its own, they rated it as if it were a stand-alone company, Moody’s says.

When reviewing the implications of the Jackson National deal, Moody’s will look at any extra support that Jackson National might provide as well as chances that the deal might help Jackson National and Life of Georgia strengthen their operations, the rating agency says.