Aquarian nears $4 billion deal to take private US insurer Brighthouse, FT reports (updated)

Brighthouse Financial

31/10/2025 01:00

Adds background and details from FT report from paragraph 2 onwards

Oct 30 (Reuters) - Aquarian Holdings is in advanced talks to take private U.S. life insurer Brighthouse Financial BHF.O in a $4 billion deal that could be announced as soon as this weekend, Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Reuters reported last month, citing sources Aquarian would pay $70 per share for the insurance and annuity provider.

However, money manager Sixth Street entered discussions to buy Brighthouse, Reuters reported earlier in October, after negotiations with Aquarian had cooled off in September.

Brighthouse, Aquarian and Sixth Street did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Reuters could not immediately verify the FT report.

Talks with Aquarian have reached an advanced stage after months of negotiations, the report said, cautioning that no deal had been fully agreed upon.

Aquarian, an insurance and asset management-focused investment firm, is backed by Abu Dhabi state fund Mubadala and RedBird Capital Partners.

U.S. life insurance and annuity providers in recent years have been attracting takeover interest from private equity firms and other asset managers that can take the underlying assets and deploy them into their various strategies.

 (Reporting by Anusha Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)

 ((AnushaDevang.Shah@thomsonreuters.com;))