New York Life has reported record financial results for 2025, including its biggest‑ever dividend to participating policyholders.
The mutual reported $3.6 billion in earnings for the year, a 4% increase on 2024, and surplus of $34.7 billion, up from $33.3 billion the previous year. Surplus includes the asset valuation reserve.
On the back of that performance, New York Life declared a $2.8 billion dividend for eligible participating policyholders, to be paid in 2026. The company said it is the largest dividend in its 172‑year history of paying dividends on participating policies.
“In 2025, we grew earnings, strengthened our capital position, and declared the largest dividend in our history,” said Craig DeSanto, chair, president and CEO of New York Life.
The results come as life carriers continue to navigate higher interest rates, scrutiny of asset risk and longevity assumptions, and a busy market for asset‑intensive deals, including pension risk transfer and in‑force annuity transactions.
New York Life’s 2025 performance was supported by growth across its main lines. Insurance sales increased 14% year on year. Annuity sales rose 40%, reflecting ongoing demand for guaranteed income and accumulation products in a higher‑rate environment. Mutual fund sales were up 7%.
In total, individual policyholders now hold nearly $1.3 trillion in life insurance coverage with New York Life, according to the company. Management said that figure reflects its “protection‑first” positioning in the US market.
New York Life said surplus growth continues to underpin its financial strength and ability to support guarantees through economic cycles. In 2025, the company again received the highest financial strength ratings currently awarded to US life insurers by all four major rating agencies.
Those ratings place the firm among a small group of global life carriers at the top of the credit spectrum. The combination of rising surplus and top‑tier ratings is notable at a time when regulators and investors are paying closer attention to liquidity, asset‑liability management and exposure to higher‑risk private assets across the sector.
The company said its capital growth, diversified earnings base and risk‑management framework are designed to ensure it can meet obligations “across economic cycles,” a message aimed at reinforcing its ability to support long‑term guarantees and dividend scales.
New York Life’s record dividend and surplus growth place it firmly in the top tier of US mutual life insurers, alongside long‑standing peers such as Northwestern Mutual, MassMutual and Guardian.
The company’s $2.8 billion dividend is smaller in absolute dollar terms than Northwestern Mutual’s but remains one of the largest among US mutuals and is the biggest in New York Life’s own history. On surplus, New York Life’s $34.7 billion capital base compares with the sizable but differently structured cushions at its main mutual peers, underlining its status as one of the best‑capitalized life insurers in the US market.
On the digital investment front, DeSanto said New York Life is continuing to invest in digital capabilities and artificial intelligence with the aim of improving service and efficiency for clients and advisors.
“We continue to invest to make it easier to do business with New York Life,” he said. “That includes expanding digital capabilities, leveraging artificial intelligence, and strengthening the technology that supports our operations - all with a focus on enhancing service, security, and long-term value.”
Across the US life market, insurers are deploying AI in underwriting, customer service, fraud detection and back‑office automation, while supervisors begin to formalize expectations on model governance and fairness. For a large mutual with a sizable career agency force, technology investment is also a signal to the field that the company intends to keep pace with changing client expectations and hybrid advice models.
