Partnership creates a Malaysian insurance powerhouse backed by an
international life insurance leader

TORONTO, Jan. 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSX: SLF) (NYSE:
SLF) (Sun Life) and Khazanah Nasional Berhad (Khazanah) are
establishing a strategic partnership to acquire 98 per cent of CIMB
Aviva Assurance Berhad, a Malaysian life insurance company, and CIMB
Aviva Takaful Berhad, a Malaysian takaful company (together, the
Company), in a transaction valued at 1.80 billion Malaysian Ringgit
(RM) (C$586 million). Sun Life and Khazanah are each paying RM900
million (C$293 million) in respect of the transaction, which includes
entering into a new 20-year exclusive bancassurance agreement with CIMB
Bank.

Sun Life and Khazanah are each acquiring 49 per cent of the Company from
Aviva International Holdings Limited and CIMB Group Holdings Berhad
(CIMB Group), respectively. CIMB Group will retain a two per cent share
in the Company.

The transaction includes an exclusive right to distribute insurance
products, including takaful products, through CIMB Bank’s network
across Malaysia. This network includes 312 branches across the country
and eight million customers.

“This transaction is perfectly aligned with our strategy for expanding
our footprint in Asia,” said Kevin Strain, President, Sun Life
Financial Asia. “With Khazanah and CIMB, we have very strong partners
with a broad distribution platform, and we are investing in a country
with one of the most developed economies in the ASEAN region and a
growing middle class. The combination of Sun Life’s global insurance
experience, Khazanah’s strategic and financial expertise as an investor
in the region, and CIMB’s strong banking presence, reputation and brand
in Malaysia and throughout the region, will deliver excellent value to
customers and make the Company a leader in the industry.”

Khazanah’s Managing Director, Tan Sri Dato‘ Azman bin Hj Mokhtar, said:
“This is an important investment for Khazanah. It marks not just an
opportunity to invest into an asset in a growth sector, but also brings
together a unique commercial partnership among three strong parties in
their respective areas. We are delighted to be partnering with Sun Life
and CIMB.”

“We look forward to working with the new bancassurance partners we have
chosen after an extensive selection process. Bancassurance remains a
core component of our wealth management proposition and we believe that
the enhanced bancassurance agreement and potential regional synergies
will enable our new partners to manufacture and support a more
competitive product range for us to take to our customers,” said Dato’
Sri Nazir Razak, Group Chief Executive, CIMB Group.

The proposed acquisition by Sun Life and Khazanah is subject to
regulatory approvals in Canada and Malaysia. The transaction is
expected to close by the first half of 2013.

Forward-Looking Statements
In this section, “we”, “us”, “our” and the “Company” refers to Sun Life
Financial Inc. and its subsidiaries, joint ventures and associates.

Certain statements in this news release, including (i) statements
concerning the anticipated timing and impact of the transactions
described above, (ii) statements relating to our strategies, (iii)
statements that are predictive in nature, (iv) statements that depend
upon or refer to future events or conditions and (v) statements that
include words such as “aim”, “anticipate”, “assumption”, “believe”,
“could”, “estimate”, “expect”, “goal”, “intend”, “may”, “objective”,
“outlook”, “plan”, “project”, “seek”, “should”, “initiatives”,
“strategy”, “strive”, “target”, “will” and similar expressions are
forward-looking statements. These statements represent our current
expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events and are
not historical facts. Forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of
future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are
difficult to predict. Future results and shareholder value may differ
materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements due
to, among other factors, the matters set out in in Sun Life Financial
Inc.’s annual MD&A under the headings Critical Accounting Policies and
Estimates and Risk Management and in Sun Life Financial Inc.’s AIF
under the headings Risk Factors and the factors detailed in Sun Life
Financial Inc.’s other filings with Canadian and U.S. securities
regulators, including its annual and interim MD&A, and annual and
interim Consolidated Financial Statements.

Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
expectations include, but are not limited to, the failure of the
parties to obtain the required regulatory approvals or to otherwise
satisfy the conditions to the completion of the transaction in a timely
manner, economic uncertainty, market conditions that affect the
Company’s capital position or its ability to raise capital; changes or
volatility in interest rates or credit/swap spreads; the performance of
equity markets; credit risks related to issuers of securities held in
our investment portfolio, debtors, structured securities, reinsurers,
derivative counterparties, other financial institutions and other
entities; risks in implementing business strategies; risk management;
changes in legislation and regulations including capital requirements
and tax laws; legal and regulatory proceedings, including inquiries and
investigations; risks relating to product design and pricing;
downgrades in financial strength or credit ratings; the ability to
attract and retain employees; the performance of the Company’s
investments and investment portfolios managed for clients such as
segregated and mutual funds; the impact of higher-than-expected future
expenses; risks relating to mortality and morbidity, including the
occurrence of natural or man-made disasters, pandemic diseases and acts
of terrorism; risks relating to the rate of mortality improvement;
risks relating to policyholder behaviour; risks related to liquidity;
dependence on third-party relationships including outsourcing
arrangements; the inability to maintain strong distribution channels
and risks relating to market conduct by intermediaries and agents;
breaches or failure of information system security and privacy,
including cyber terrorism; business continuity risks; risks relating to
financial modelling errors; risks relating to real estate investments;
risks relating to estimates and judgements used in calculating taxes;
the impact of mergers and acquisitions; risks relating to operations in
Asia including the Company’s joint ventures; the impact of competition;
fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rate; risks relating to the
closed block of business; risks relating to the environment,
environmental laws and regulations and third-party policies; and the
availability, cost and effectiveness of reinsurance.

About Sun Life Financial

Sun Life Financial is a leading international financial services
organization providing a diverse range of protection and wealth
accumulation products and services to individuals and corporate
customers. Chartered in 1865, Sun Life Financial and its partners today
have operations in key markets worldwide, including Canada, the United
States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan,
Indonesia, India, China, Vietnam and Bermuda. As of September 30, 2012,
the Sun Life Financial group of companies had total AUM of C$515
billion. For more information please visit www.sunlife.com.

Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and
Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.

About Khazanah Nasional Berhad

Khazanah Nasional Berhad is the strategic investment fund of the
Government of Malaysia entrusted to hold and manage the commercial
assets of the Government and to undertake strategic investments.
Khazanah is involved in various sectors such as power,
telecommunications, banking, healthcare, airport management,
infrastructure, leisure & tourism, property development, broadcasting,
investment holding, and technology. Some of the key listed companies in
Khazanah’s investment portfolio include Telekom Malaysia Bhd., Tenaga
Nasional Bhd., CIMB Group, Axiata Group Bhd., IHH Healthcare Bhd.,
Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd., and UEM Land Holdings Bhd. For further
information on Khazanah, please visit www.khazanah.com.my.

SOURCE Sun Life Financial Inc.