Insurance giant Aviva has sold Friends Provident International Ltd to an Isle of Man based business.

Castletown based FPIL employs around 500 staff worldwide of which 150 are based in the island.

International Financial Group Ltd, the owner of the RL360 brand, based in Cooil Road, Douglas, has reached an agreement with the Aviva Group to acquire FPIL, subject to regulatory approval.

David Kneeshaw, IFGL’s chief executive, said:‘Welcoming FPIL to the IFGL Group’s already impressive stable fits with our stated long-term goal of high-quality acquisitions to complement our existing international business.’

Aviva said the sale is for a total consideration of £340m.

Chris Wei, executive chairman of Avivam Asia and FPIL said: ’The sale of Friends Provident International Ltd is a good outcome for Aviva.’

There is more on this story in the Manx Independent in the shops tomorrow. (Thursday)