Springfield, Massachusetts-based MassMutual is selling its retirement business, which represents about a quarter of the company's U.S. workforce.
According to MassMutual, 2,000 employees currently work in the retirement area, with a majority of them based at the company's office in Enfield, Connecticut.
Asked what the sale means for the workers, a MassMutual spokesperson referred questions to the buyer, Empower Retirement. Requests for comment were not returned by Empower as of Wednesday afternoon.
In 2018, MassMutual announced it would close the Enfield facility by the end of 2021, while shifting positions to Massachusetts.
MassMutual and Empower Retirement said their more than $3 billion deal will close by the end of this year, pending regulatory approval.
MassMutual's retirement business has quadrupled over the last decade, the company said. It manages assets worth more than $167 billion.
“In Empower, we are pleased to have found a strong, long-term home for MassMutual’s retirement plan business, and believe this transaction will greatly benefit our policyowners and customers as we invest in our future growth and accelerate progress on our strategy,” Roger Crandall, MassMutual's chairman, president and CEO, said in a statement.
Empower, which is headquartered near Denver, currently administers $667 billion in assets for approximately 9.7 million customers.
