LONDON, March 6, 2026, 09:19 GMT
Lloyds Banking Group plc is now leading the chase for Aegon’s UK arm, according to Financial News on Wednesday, though Phoenix and Canada Life remain contenders. The deal could fetch between 1 billion and 1.5 billion pounds, per the report. Final offers are due next month, and a decision could land in April.
Timing’s a factor here. British banks are stepping up their focus on savings, pensions, and financial advice—areas that generate fee income, not just interest from loans—as the prospect of lower rates looms and lending profits face pressure. Last month, NatWest struck a £2.7 billion deal for Evelyn Partners, with Benjamin Toms at RBC Capital Markets describing the acquisition as “transformational”. Reuters
Lloyds has followed a similar path. Back in October, the bank struck a deal to acquire Schroders’ interest in their UK wealth joint venture. The business is being rebranded as Lloyds Wealth. At the time, Chira Barua, who leads insurance, pensions and investments, put it plainly: “growing wealth in the UK is core to our purpose.” Reuters
Back in February, Aegon signaled it would deliver a summer update on the UK business review—a process that might result in selling off parts of its British operations, although the asset-management division is excluded. According to earlier reports, Aegon’s UK business serves about 3.7 million customers, overseeing roughly 220 billion pounds in assets. That tally covers a workplace pensions provider plus two adviser platforms, both used by financial advisers to handle client funds.
Lloyds isn’t short on options for giving cash back to shareholders as it searches for new avenues of growth. On Jan. 29, the bank posted a 12% jump in 2025 pretax profit to 6.7 billion pounds, topping analysts’ estimates. That result pushed Lloyds to announce a 1.75 billion pound share buyback and hike its 2026 profitability goal.
Lloyds picked up another 20.2 million shares on March 4, and went in for 28 million more the next day, regulatory filings this week revealed. Both lots are headed for cancellation. Even as potential deals swirl around its wealth division, the bank keeps pressing on with capital returns.
With the annual results, Chief Executive Charlie Nunn pointed to “continued business momentum and strategic delivery” as reasons Lloyds could raise its outlook. Shore Capital analyst Gary Greenwood noted back in January that big banks like Lloyds are facing political pressure to bolster growth, potentially putting downward pressure on loan pricing. That adds to the appeal of more stable fee income. Reuters
Competition is anything but sparse. Back in February, Bloomberg noted that Lloyds and Phoenix put in first bids for Aegon’s UK business, with Canada Life circling too. Now, Financial News puts Lloyds ahead after round one.
The deal remains up in the air. Financial News reports nothing is final, and Aegon hasn’t detailed what any planned sale would actually look like. There’s some valuation risk here, too: Jefferies flagged that NatWest’s Evelyn acquisition might shave 2% off earnings per share through 2028—a hit to that key profit metric.
Lloyds has its strategy update scheduled for July 30. But first, Aegon’s next round of bids—and the summer update it pledged—could reveal if this latest report actually results in a signed agreement.
