Prudential Board Votes to Demutualize

Prudential Insurance Co. has approved a plan to go public, abandoning its mutual status in an effort to access more capital and greater flexibility. The move would follow on the heels of public offerings by Metlife and John Hancock Financial Services, which listed their shares on the New York Stock Exchange this year.

The company’s board has authorized submission of a plan for reorganization to the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance, which it will likely do by the end of February. If approved, Prudential’s 11 million eligible policyholders must vote on the plan before Prudential can complete the demutualization. Policyholders would then receive stock in the publicly traded company.