MetLife Announces Offerings of Common Stock and Common Equity Units

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET) announced today plans to offer 68,570,000 shares of its common stock to the public. ALICO Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of American International Group, Inc. (AIG), is also offering 78,239,712 shares of MetLife common stock to the public, for a total offering of 146,809,712 shares.

Concurrently with the common stock offerings, AIG is also offering 40,000,000 common equity units of MetLife. The common stock offerings are not conditioned on the completion of the common equity unit offering.

AIG received the 78,239,712 shares of MetLife common stock and the 40,000,000 common equity units as part of the consideration for MetLife’s acquisition of Alico on November 1, 2010. Additionally, AIG acquired 6,857,000 shares of contingent convertible preferred stock, which are convertible into 68,570,000 shares of MetLife common stock upon a favorable vote of MetLife’s common stockholders.

MetLife intends to use all of the proceeds from the offering of its 68,570,000 shares of common stock to repurchase and cancel the 6,857,000 shares of contingent convertible preferred stock owned by AIG. To the extent MetLife sells fewer than 68,570,000 shares of common stock in this offering, it will repurchase proportionately the 6,857,000 shares of contingent convertible preferred stock from AIG.

MetLife will not receive any proceeds from the offering of the 78,239,712 MetLife shares of common stock or 40,000,000 common equity units currently owned by AIG.

The offerings are intended to provide for an orderly disposition of the MetLife securities owned by AIG. If all of the securities offered are sold, AIG will have sold all of its holdings of MetLife securities received in MetLife’s acquisition of Alico. In addition, the offerings will not impact the anticipated number of MetLife common shares that would be outstanding immediately following the conversion of the contingent convertible preferred stock.

In connection with these offerings, MetLife has waived certain provisions of the Investor Rights Agreement that MetLife and AIG entered into upon the acquisition of Alico by MetLife. Among other things, the Investor Rights Agreement required AIG to hold specified amounts of MetLife securities for certain designated periods of time. If fewer than all of the securities are sold through the offerings, the original terms of the Investor Rights Agreement will continue to apply to the unsold securities.

Goldman, Sachs & Co., Citi and Credit Suisse are the book-running managers for the common stock transaction. Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Citi are the book-running managers for the common equity units transaction. A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and is effective. This press release is neither an offer to sell, nor a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state. The proposed offerings will be made only by means of a prospectus and related prospectus supplement. Copies of the prospectus and prospectus supplement for the offerings may be obtained when available from Goldman, Sachs & Co., Prospectus Department, 200 West Street, New York, NY 10282, telephone: 1-866-471-2526, facsimile: 212-902-9316 or by emailing [email protected]; Citi, Attention: Prospectus Department, Brooklyn Army Terminal, 140 58th Street, 8th floor, Brooklyn, New York 11220, telephone: (800) 831-9146, or email: [email protected]; or Credit Suisse Prospectus DepartmentOne Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10010; tel: 1-800-221-1037.

MetLife, Inc. is a leading global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs, serving 90 million customers in over 60 countries. Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, MetLife holds leading market positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. For more information about MetLife, visit www.metlife.com.

This press release may contain or incorporate by reference information that includes or is based upon forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements give expectations or forecasts of future events. These statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. They use words such as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “expect,” “project,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe” and other words and terms of similar meaning in connection with a discussion of future operating or financial performance. In particular, these include statements relating to future actions, prospective services or products, future performance or results of current and anticipated services or products, sales efforts, expenses, the outcome of contingencies such as legal proceedings, trends in operations and financial results.

Any or all forward-looking statements may turn out to be wrong. They can be affected by inaccurate assumptions or by known or unknown risks and uncertainties. Many such factors will be important in determining the actual future results of MetLife, Inc., its subsidiaries and affiliates. These statements are based on current expectations and the current economic environment. They involve a number of risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. These statements are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Risks, uncertainties, and other factors that might cause such differences include the risks, uncertainties and other factors identified in MetLife, Inc.’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). These factors include: (1) difficult conditions in the global capital markets; (2) increased volatility and disruption of the capital and credit markets, which may affect our ability to seek financing or access our credit facilities; (3) uncertainty about the effectiveness of the U.S. government’s programs to stabilize the financial system, the imposition of fees relating thereto, or the promulgation of additional regulations; (4) impact of comprehensive financial services regulation reform on us; (5) exposure to financial and capital market risk; (6) changes in general economic conditions, including the performance of financial markets and interest rates, which may affect our ability to raise capital, generate fee income and market-related revenue and finance statutory reserve requirements and may require us to pledge collateral or make payments related to declines in value of specified assets; (7) potential liquidity and other risks resulting from our participation in a securities lending program and other transactions; (8) investment losses and defaults, and changes to investment valuations; (9) impairments of goodwill and realized losses or market value impairments to illiquid assets; (10) defaults on our mortgage loans; (11) the impairment of other financial institutions that could adversely affect our investments or business; (12) our ability to address unforeseen liabilities, asset impairments, loss of key contractual relationships, or rating actions arising from acquisitions or dispositions, including our acquisition of American Life Insurance Company (“American Life”), a subsidiary of ALICO Holdings LLC (“ALICO Holdings”), and Delaware American Life Insurance Company (“DelAm,” together with American Life, collectively, “ALICO”) (the “Acquisition”) and to successfully integrate and manage the growth of acquired businesses with minimal disruption; (13) uncertainty with respect to the outcome of the closing agreement entered into between American Life and the United States Internal Revenue Service in connection with the Acquisition; (14) uncertainty with respect to any incremental tax benefits resulting from the planned elections for ALICO and certain of its subsidiaries under Section 338 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Section 338 Elections”); (15) the dilutive impact on our stockholders resulting from the issuance of equity securities to ALICO Holdings in connection with the Acquisition; (16) downward pressure on our stock price as a result of ALICO Holdings’ ability to sell its equity securities; (17) the conditional payment obligation of approximately $300 million to ALICO Holdings if the conversion of the preferred stock issued to ALICO Holdings in connection with the Acquisition into our common stock is not approved; (18) economic, political, currency and other risks relating to our international operations, including with respect to fluctuations of exchange rates; (19) our primary reliance, as a holding company, on dividends from our subsidiaries to meet debt payment obligations and the applicable regulatory restrictions on the ability of the subsidiaries to pay such dividends; (20) downgrades in our claims paying ability, financial strength or credit ratings; (21) ineffectiveness of risk management policies and procedures; (22) availability and effectiveness of reinsurance or indemnification arrangements, as well as default or failure of counterparties to perform; (23) discrepancies between actual claims experience and assumptions used in setting prices for our products and establishing the liabilities for our obligations for future policy benefits and claims; (24) catastrophe losses; (25) heightened competition, including with respect to pricing, entry of new competitors, consolidation of distributors, the development of new products by new and existing competitors, distribution of amounts available under U.S. government programs, and for personnel; (26) unanticipated changes in industry trends; (27) changes in accounting standards, practices and/or policies; (28) changes in assumptions related to deferred policy acquisition costs, deferred sales inducements, value of business acquired or goodwill; (29) increased expenses relating to pension and postretirement benefit plans, as well as health care and other employee benefits; (30) exposure to losses related to variable annuity guarantee benefits, including from significant and sustained downturns or extreme volatility in equity markets, reduced interest rates, unanticipated policyholder behavior, mortality or longevity, and the adjustment for nonperformance risk; (31) deterioration in the experience of the “closed block” established in connection with the reorganization of Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; (32) adverse results or other consequences from litigation, arbitration or regulatory investigations; (33) inability to protect our intellectual property rights or claims of infringement of the intellectual property rights of others, (34) discrepancies between actual experience and assumptions used in establishing liabilities related to other contingencies or obligations; (35) regulatory, legislative or tax changes relating to our insurance, banking, international, or other operations that may affect the cost of, or demand for, our products or services, impair our ability to attract and retain talented and experienced management and other employees, or increase the cost or administrative burdens of providing benefits to employees; (36) the effects of business disruption or economic contraction due to terrorism, other hostilities, or natural catastrophes, including any related impact on our disaster recovery systems and management continuity planning which could impair our ability to conduct business effectively; (37) the effectiveness of our programs and practices in avoiding giving our associates incentives to take excessive risks; and (38) other risks and uncertainties described from time to time in MetLife, Inc.’s filings with the SEC.

MetLife, Inc. does not undertake any obligation to publicly correct or update any forward-looking statement if we later become aware that such statement is not likely to be achieved. Please consult any further disclosures MetLife, Inc. makes on related subjects in reports to the SEC.

MetLife, Inc.
For Media:John Calagna, 212-578-6252
or
For Investors:John McCallion, 212-578-7888

Source: MetLife, Inc.