First Colony Life

First Colony Life Insurance Company (NAIC 65536) is an example of how insurers simplify legal-entity structures as business models evolve. A Virginia State Corporation Commission examination report covering Genworth Life and Annuity Insurance Company documents the consolidation history within the Genworth organization and notes that First Colony Life was merged into Genworth Life and Annuity and ceased to exist as a separate company. [1]

That type of merger is usually driven by practical pressures rather than consumer-facing branding: reducing duplicate infrastructure, centralizing reserving and investment management, and aligning capital under fewer regulated entities. In the life insurance context, consolidation can also make it easier to manage long-duration guarantees through consistent actuarial assumptions, unified risk governance, and a single set of statutory filings. [1]

First Colony's legacy therefore lives on less as an active marketing brand and more as part of a larger carrier that continues servicing obligations written under earlier names. Regulators and examiners focus on whether policyholder benefits remain protected through these reorganizations - especially during economic cycles that stress life insurers, such as credit downturns or prolonged low interest rates. The Virginia examination report provides the public record for the merger and the supervisory lens applied to the surviving entity. [1]

First Colony Life Insurance Company

• Corporate Owner: Genworth Financial
• Home Office Address: 11011 W Broad St, Glen Allen, VA 23060.
• Rich History & Highlights:
  • 1955: Founded in Lynchburg, VA. It became a pioneer in brokerage distribution (using independent agents rather than career agents) and specialized in "impaired risk" (substandard) underwriting.
  • 1996: GE Acquisition: GE Capital acquires First Colony Life for $1.8 billion to bolster its "GE Financial Assurance" division.
  • 2004: The Spin-Off: GE spins off its insurance businesses into a new public company, Genworth Financial. First Colony becomes a subsidiary of Genworth.
  • 2007: Merger: First Colony Life is legally merged into Genworth Life and Annuity Insurance Company (GLAIC). The First Colony brand ceases to exist as a separate entity.
• Source: Genworth/First Colony Merger SEC Filing

Sources: [1] https://scc.virginia.gov/getattachment/205f6fcf-c0f0-48fc-a32c-d5c6cf8d6d70/65536f19.pdf.