Standard Life posts 25% profit rise and confirms £800m in Aegon ‘synergies’
“It has been a dizzying time for Standard Life’s shares, which have skyrocketed since the beginning of 2025” – Chris Beauchamp, analyst
Standard Life said it remains on track to meet all of its 2026 financial targets as it pushes ahead with its bumper £2 billion takeover of Aegon UK.
Group chief executive Andy Briggs hailed a “strong” first half for the Edinburgh-based group as he unveiled a 25 per cent increase in adjusted operating profit, to £563 million, from £451m a year earlier.
In April, Standard Life announced plans to acquire Aegon UK, which is also based in Edinburgh, in a deal that will create a pension and savings giant with some 16 million customers. Its first-half results confirmed that the group was targeting some £800m worth of “synergies” from its takeover of Aegon UK.
Standard Life said it was on track to achieve its target of around £1.1bn in adjusted operating profit for the full year. It comes after making £210m worth of cost savings as part of a three-year £250m cost-cutting target, which it is on track to meet by the end of 2026.
The Aegon UK takeover is expected to complete around the end of 2026, subject to it being approved by regulators, and will create the UK’s largest retirement savings and income business with assets under administration of around £480bn.
Briggs told investors: “Standard Life continues to demonstrate exciting momentum against our vision to be the UK’s leading retirement savings and income business. Our strong half-year results reflect how we are helping more customers achieve better outcomes and we remain on track to deliver our end-2026 financial targets, while our profitable growth and strong cash generation is increasing our financial flexibility. The £2bn acquisition of Aegon UK… will further strengthen our capabilities and customer offering.”
On a reported basis, Standard Life posted a loss of £179m for the first half of its financial year.
Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at investing and trading platform IG, noted: “It has been a dizzying time for Standard Life’s shares, which have skyrocketed since the beginning of 2025. But the group continues to deliver, with the Aegon deal giving it the heft to compete in the vital and still-expanding UK wealth management market.”
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.