Saga shares rise as it partners with Goldman Sachs to offer savings products
Over 50s insurance and tourism group Saga announced today it is partnering with Goldman Sachs to offer savings products to its clients.
The move is part of a strategy aimed at turning the company around after a poor run of results.
In April its shares dived 40 per cent after it warned that Brexit uncertainty was hitting its travel business and price comparison sites were eating into its insurance margins.
Saga is partnering with Goldman Sachs’ retail banking offering, Marcus, which launched in the UK in September 2018 and has since attracted over 250,000 customers.
Saga said it will launch new products with Marcus from autumn 2019.
Saga said the announcement is “one of several strategic initiatives by the group that are aimed at returning Saga to its heritage of delivering high quality products and services to its customers.”
Chief executive Lance Batchelor said: “This is an exciting time for Saga and our customers as we announce our new long-term savings partnership. We know that our customers hold a large proportion of their wealth in savings and want to know that they’re getting a great return with a brand they can trust.”
Harit Talwar, global head of Marcus, said: “We are excited to collaborate with brands such as Saga and to provide savings products to their customers. This partnership is an example of our ambition to bring our global scale and deep capabilities to meet a broad range of personal finance and investment needs.”
After its April profit warning Saga said it would move away from winning insurance business through cheap introductory offers.
It said it “will offer a differentiated insurance product on the basis of unique and attractive features”.
It announced the launch of a home and motor insurance product that guarantees the same premium for three years providing there are no claims in the period, available only to customers who come directly to Saga.
Marcus, named after the bank’s co-founder Marcus Goldman, offers an annual equivalent rate of 1.5 per cent, including a 12-month bonus rate of 0.15 per cent.
Saga’s share price rose six per cent in early trading to 43p.