Brighthouse Financial
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Insurance |
| Founded | 2017 |
| Headquarters | Charlotte, North Carolina , United States |
Area served | United States |
| Products | Life insurance, annuities |
Brighthouse Financial, Inc. is a U.S.-based insurance firm headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, focusing primarily on life insurance and annuity offerings. By March 2018, it was recognized as one of the leading providers in the American market within its industry, overseeing assets totaling $219 billion and managing around 2.6 million active insurance policies and annuity agreements. In that same year, Brighthouse Financial was among 91 Fortune 500 companies with an effective federal tax rate at or below zero percent, a circumstance influenced by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Founding
The company originated in 2017, building upon the legacy of Travelers, which had entered the life insurance market in 1923 and introduced annuities in 1938, alongside MetLife, which expanded through acquisitions including New England Life Insurance Company (NELICO) in 1996 and Security First Group, Inc., an annuity provider, in 1997. MetLife further consolidated its position by acquiring Travelers Life in 2005.
Spin-off from MetLife
In January 2016, MetLife declared its intention to divest a significant segment of its U.S. retail life insurance and annuity operations. The entities involved in this separation were Brighthouse Life Insurance Company (previously MetLife Insurance Company USA), Brighthouse Life Insurance Company of NY (formerly First MetLife Investors Insurance Company), and New England Life Insurance Company. On July 21, 2016, the business was rebranded as Brighthouse Financial and commenced sales under this brand on March 6, 2017.
The formal separation from MetLife was finalized on August 4, 2017, with Brighthouse Financial beginning public trading on Nasdaq under the ticker "BHF" on August 7, 2017. Initially, MetLife maintained a 19.2% ownership stake but divested its remaining shares in 2018 through a debt-for-equity swap involving four financial institutions that held MetLife's debt. The enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 contributed to Brighthouse Financial achieving an effective federal tax rate at or below zero percent during that period.
Acquisition
In November 2025, Aquarian Holdings, a private equity firm based in New York, agreed to purchase Brighthouse Financial for $4.1 billion in a transaction paid entirely in cash.
Products
Brighthouse Financial markets life insurance and annuity products to consumers across the United States via various independent distribution networks. The servicing of these products is managed by the external vendor DXC Technology, rather than being handled internally by Brighthouse Financial.