Canadian financial services group Sun Life has rebranded globally as Sunlife, merging its name into a single word and adopting a new logo and the tagline “Making life brighter.”
Here in the UK, the new name needs a word of explanation. The Toronto-based group is not the same business as SunLife, the UK brand known for life insurance aimed at the over-50s, equity release and guaranteed plans. That brand is owned by Phoenix Group and operates independently in the UK market.
The two names share a history. Sun Life of Canada ran a UK subsidiary, SLF of Canada UK Limited, for more than a century before selling its UK life and pensions business to Phoenix, a deal that completed in April 2023. The Canadian group no longer runs a retail life insurance business in the UK, although it retains some economic interests linked to UK payout annuities, as well as UK activity through its asset management businesses, MFS and SLC Management.
The rebrand does not affect Phoenix’s SunLife brand or its UK customers.
Sunlife said the change reflects how far it has grown beyond its origins in life insurance into asset management, health, wealth and insurance. The new logo is a modernised, simplified version of its sun globe design, built for digital use.
The rebrand will roll out in phases across its markets and businesses, starting with high-impact digital and client-facing channels. Sunlife said customers may see both the old and new branding during the transition.
“By bringing the strength of Sunlife together under one clear global identity, we create deeper relationships, serve more of our Clients’ needs and unlock new opportunities for growth,” said Kevin Strain, president and chief executive.
Sunlife released global research alongside the rebrand. The survey of adults in Canada, the US, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, found wide gaps between what people say matters and the plans they have in place.
Across the eight markets, 61% said protecting against the costs of an unexpected illness or accident was very important, but only 33% had a full plan. Some 60% said securing their family’s future was very important, while 31% had a full plan. The largest gap was in caregiving: 57% said being able to care for an ageing or sick family member was very important, but just 27% had a full plan. For retirement, 56% rated having a plan as very important and 31% had one.
Planning steps lagged further. While 53% believed they were on track to leave their family the financial support they wanted, only 37% had named beneficiaries on their accounts or insurance, 26% had a will, and 24% had met a financial adviser. Three-quarters (75%) said access to trustworthy financial planning advice would make them more confident about the future.
Earnscliffe conducted the 15-minute online survey for Sunlife from September 10 to 25, using panels from Leger and Prodege. The headline figures are averages across the eight markets, not population-weighted results.
Clients holding SunLife policies, or considering the brand’s over-50s products, may see coverage of the Canadian rebrand and assume their insurer has changed. It has not, and advisers can reassure them that Phoenix’s SunLife business is unaffected.
The research covers markets outside the UK, but its findings echo themes familiar to UK advisers: the gap between how much people say protection matters and the cover they actually hold, and the value clients place on trusted advice.
