Gamble of the week: An unusual insurer

If you think stock markets are in for a period of calm, this closed-fund insurer could be worth a punt, says Phil Oakley.

Phoenix Group Holdings is a different type of insurer. Unlike Aviva or Legal & General, it doesn't sell insurance policies to new customers. Instead, it operates what is known as a closed fund business. Winning new life insurance business is usually a costly affair.

With more money buffers needed to protect customers, it's become increasingly tough for insurers to make money from them. It's cheaper and simpler to close the business to new customers and look after existing ones. This is largely how Phoenix Group, which also owns an asset management business, Ignis, makes a living.

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Phil spent 13 years as an investment analyst for both stockbroking and fund management companies.

 

After graduating with a MSc in International Banking, Economics & Finance from Liverpool Business School in 1996, Phil went to work for BWD Rensburg, a Liverpool based investment manager. In 2001, he joined ABN AMRO as a transport analyst. After a brief spell as a food retail analyst, he spent five years with ABN's very successful UK Smaller Companies team where he covered engineering, transport and support services stocks.

 

In 2007, Phil joined Halbis Capital Management as a European equities analyst. He began writing for MoneyWeek in 2010.