Security-Connecticut Life Insurance Company (NAIC 91588) appears in California insurance records as a life-disability writer with a status shown as merged and affiliated with the ING group, reflecting how the company ultimately became part of the ING/Voya family of insurers.[1] That outcome traces back to the late 1990s consolidation of regional insurers. A New York Department of Financial Services examination report for a related ReliaStar entity describes how Security-Connecticut Corporation was merged into ReliaStar Financial Corporation effective July 1, 1997, with subsequent holding-company reorganizations.[2] A contemporaneous SEC filing/press release likewise describes ReliaStar's completion of the acquisition of Security-Connecticut Corporation.[3] These transactions illustrate why life insurers consolidate: scale in policy administration, broader distribution, and stronger capital management in an industry dominated by long-duration promises. Once inside a larger group, carriers like Security-Connecticut typically transition from active brand-building to back-book stewardship, supporting existing policyholders and integrating systems.[1][2] Reinsurance often accompanies such restructuring. Examination and transaction documents highlight the corporate mechanics, while reinsurer identities can vary over time; nonetheless, the mergers themselves signal a search for stability and capital efficiency.[2][3] Security-Connecticut's legacy is therefore a case study in how mid-sized insurers were absorbed into national platforms as product complexity, regulation, and investment risk management increased in the decades leading up to the post-2008 era.[1][2][3]
Security-Connecticut Life Insurance Company History & Highlights
The following timeline details the history of Security-Connecticut Life Insurance Company (SCLIC), tracing its roots from a New Haven-based property insurer to its era as a publicly traded company and its eventual integration into global financial giants like ING and Voya.
Origins & Early History (1841 – 1978)
- 1841: The Mutual Security Insurance Company of New Haven is founded in New Haven, CT. This property and casualty insurer is the historical parent organization that would later spawn the life insurance subsidiary.
- 1873: The parent company changes its name to the Security Insurance Company of New Haven.
- 1955 (Founding): Security-Connecticut Life Insurance Company is incorporated in Avon, Connecticut, as the life insurance subsidiary of the Security Insurance Company of New Haven. It becomes the first ordinary life insurance company formed in Connecticut since 1865.
- 1964: The company's stock begins trading publicly for the first time (NASDAQ), marking an early period of independence before its first major acquisition.
Lincoln National Era (1979 – 1993)
- 1979 (Acquisition): Lincoln National Corporation (Fort Wayne, IN) acquires Security-Connecticut Life in a cash transaction valued at approximately $122 million ($42 per share). The company operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lincoln National.
- 1980s: Under Lincoln National, Security-Connecticut focuses on brokerage distribution and estate planning products.
Independence & Public Company Era (1994 – 1996)
- 1994 (IPO/Spinoff): Lincoln National spins off the company through an Initial Public Offering (IPO). The newly independent entity is named Security-Connecticut Corporation (holding company) with Security-Connecticut Life as its primary subsidiary. It trades on the NYSE under the ticker SRC.
- 1996: The company establishes a strong niche in selling life insurance to wealthy consumers for estate planning, employing about 430 people at its Avon, CT headquarters.
ReliaStar & ING Acquisition (1997 – 2002)
- 1997 (Acquisition by ReliaStar): ReliaStar Financial Corp. (Minneapolis) acquires Security-Connecticut Corp. for approximately $413 million in stock.
- Impact: Security-Connecticut becomes a subsidiary of ReliaStar but initially retains its brand and Avon operations.
- 1998 (Internal Restructure): On January 1, the original Security-Connecticut Life Insurance Company merges into its own subsidiary, Lincoln Security Life Insurance Company.
- Name Change: Immediately upon the merger, the surviving entity (Lincoln Security) changes its name to Security-Connecticut Life Insurance Company.
- 2000 (Acquisition by ING): ING Groep N.V. acquires ReliaStar Financial Corp. for $6.1 billion. Consequently, Security-Connecticut Life becomes an indirect subsidiary of ING.
Integration & Dissolution (2003 – Present)
- 2002–2003 (Brand Retirement): ING retires the "Security-Connecticut" brand to unify its U.S. operations.
- The Avon, CT headquarters is closed, and remaining operations are transferred to ING's Hartford and Windsor offices.
- New policies are issued under the ING (and later ReliaStar) names.
- 2014 (Rebranding to Voya): ING U.S. spins off from its Dutch parent and rebrands as Voya Financial. The legacy Security-Connecticut policies are serviced under Voya's "ReliaStar" entities.
- 2019 (Sale to Resolution Life): Voya Financial sells substantially all of its individual life insurance businesses (including the closed blocks of Security-Connecticut policies) to Resolution Life US.
Sources: [1] https://interactive.web.insurance.ca.gov/companyprofile/companyprofile?doFunction=getCompanyProfile&event=companyProfile&naic=91588 (CA Dept. of Insurance - Company Profile (NAIC 91588)) ; [2] https://www.dfs.ny.gov/reports_and_publications/exam_reports/life_insurance/61360fc16 (NY Dept. of Financial Services exam report (ReliaStar Bankers Security Life)) ; [3] https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/841528/0000897101-97-000732.txt (SEC archive (ReliaStar acquisition of Security-Connecticut))
