125 years of continuous growth - iA Financial Group launches cross-country anniversary tour

QUEBEC CITY, Jan. 11, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - iA Financial Group is hitting the road! To mark its 125th anniversary, the company has launched a series of activities that will be held throughout the year, from coast to coast. These include a philanthropic contest and a nationwide tour where special squads will be handing out cash prizes.

With a 500% increase in the value of its shares since 2000, a strong acquisition-led growth strategy and a pronounced shift towards digital technology, iA Financial Group wants to share its 125 years of success with Canadians.

"iA Financial Group clients rely on the longevity and stability of a company that has inspired trust for 125 years. It's important for us to celebrate this milestone by reaching out to those who have chosen us and taking this opportunity to say thank you!" says Mr. Yvon Charest, President and Chief Executive Officer of iA Financial Group.

YEAR-LONG CELEBRATIONS
The company has several surprises in store for its clients, employees and the general public throughout the year. Until mid-February, squads will be handing out a total of $125,000 in cash prizes of $125 each on the streets of Quebec City, Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto, with one city selected per week, targeting primarily Canadians who have performed a spontaneous good deed. Think "pay it forward."

Then, beginning in June, iA Financial Group squads will travel around the country in a vehicle filled with elephant-shaped effigies (in homage to our company logo). The squads will attend some forty local events where participants will be invited to guess the number of toy elephants on board. The tidy sum of $12,500 will be drawn among the participants whose guess is the closest to the actual number.

The high point of the year-long celebrations? Without doubt it will be the philanthropic contest where one Canadian registered charity will receive a donation of $125,000 to help fund a specific project and nine other charitable organizations will each receive a donation of $12,500. "Philanthropy is second-nature to our company as well as to me. This contest will help us make a lasting difference in a community," says Mr. Charest.

Contest details will be unveiled in the spring.

To learn more about all of iA Financial Group's 125th anniversary activities, visit ia.ca/125.

MULTI-LEVEL COMMITMENT
iA Financial Group currently has over 5,300 employees and around 25,000 representatives throughout its extensive financial product and service distribution networks.

"It will always be our mission to be a leading financial institution dedicated to the protection and savings of our clients. For our employees, we will maintain our firm commitment to helping them achieve their career goals and offering them a stimulating work environment. We will also continue to be a partner for communities, with a dedication to supporting them in achieving their goals. To our investors, I reiterate our commitment to generating long-term value, as we have consistently done since iA Financial Group became a public company in 2000," Mr. Charest points out.

iA Financial Group has total assets under management and administration of more than $126B. Since 2000, the company has made over 50 acquisitions in Canada and the United States, with the largest acquisition in the company's history announced this past December — the purchase of HollisWealth, a leading Canadian financial network specializing in asset management.

FOCUS ON DIGITAL DEVELOPMENT
Digital development will continue to be a main task at iA Financial Group in 2017. "We want to offer our clients online financial products and services, enabling them to purchase products more quickly and significantly reducing the time needed for taking out insurance, for example," the iA Financial Group President and Chief Executive Officer adds.

The undertaking, which has already been initiated, will continue after the 125th anniversary and will remain a priority for the company.

ABOUT iA FINANCIAL GROUP
Founded in 1892, iA Financial Group offers a range of life and health insurance products, mutual and segregated funds, savings and retirement plans, securities, auto and home insurance, mortgages and car loans as well as a host of other financial products and services for individuals as well as businesses and groups. iA Financial Group is one of the four largest Canadian life and health insurance companies and one of the country's most prominent public companies. Its stock is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol IAG.

HIGHLIGHTS

125 YEARS OF HISTORY

• The story of iA Financial Group originated with the intertwining of two parallel destinies, those of Alliance Nationale and Industrial Life.
  
• Alliance Nationale was created in 1892, in Montreal, with assets of just over $10,000.
  
• Industrial Life Insurance Company was founded in Quebec City in 1905.
  
• In 1987, Industrial Life and Alliance merged to become a new company called Industrial Alliance Life Insurance Company, which later became better known as Industrial Alliance.

The company subsequently continued to evolve at three major levels:

• From a mutual company to a share capital company
  
  In 2000, Industrial Alliance went from being a mutual company (that is to say owned by the insured) to a share capital company (that is to say owned by its shareholders) and was officially listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol IAG.

• From a Quebec-based company to a pan-Canadian company with a presence in the United States
  
  In the early 1980s, Industrial Alliance operated primarily in Quebec. The company's activities gradually expanded outside the province. Today, 60% of its business volume, measured in premiums and deposits, is generated outside the province (data as at September 30, 2016).
   
• From an insurance company to a financial institution
  
  Until the early 2000s, Industrial Alliance was most widely recognized as a life insurance company. Thanks to its sustained growth and more than 50 targeted and strategic acquisitions, Industrial Alliance has become a major institution with subsidiaries in several areas of financial services. Its new name, iA Financial Group, perfectly exemplifies this.

SOURCE Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc.

For further information: Source: Pierre Picard, Public Relations Manager, iA Financial Group, ia.ca; Media Contacts: Karen Bennett, [email protected], T 613-233-9191, ext. 1, C 613-863-2274; Philippe Béliveau, [email protected], T 418-704-1559, ext. 225, C 418-559-0580

Related Links

http://www.inalco.com