Mutual is not just part of our name. It’s part of our history and our everyday commitment to establishing and maintaining a mutual, long-term relationship with you.
You may have wondered what the term "mutual" means in the names of some insurance companies. There are two common forms of insurance company structure: mutual and stock. As a mutual company, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual) does not have any shareholders and is often described as being owned by its members. For MassMutual, this generally means that, if you are an insured under a whole life insurance policy issued by MassMutual, for example, you are a member entitled to vote for the company's board of directors. Moreover, if you also own the policy, you may be entitled to share in any dividends the company may declare. Insurance companies that are not mutual companies are most often structured as publicly owned stock companies, where the company is owned by its shareholders.
The Mutual Advantage
We believe our mutual ownership provides an array of advantages and offers distinct benefits including:
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Working in Your Interest. Because MassMutual has no shareholders, we don’t face pressures from the market to enhance stock prices. With the ability to focus on the long term, we are able to ensure that our policyholders are a top priority. |
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Earnings Stay in the "Family." After setting aside a safe margin for reserves and surplus, the amount of life premiums left over may be returned to participating policyholders in the form of dividends, if any are declared. In each of the past five years, we paid over one billion dollars in dividends to our policyholders1. |
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Independence. Publicly owned companies may be subject to the demands of outside investors and Wall Street analysts. As a mutual company, MassMutual is not subject to these pressures and can stay focused on our business and our customers. |
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Plenty of Opportunity To Grow and Acquire. As a quick look at our Annual Report shows, under our mutual structure, we have experienced strong growth and excellent opportunities for acquisitions of well-known and respected companies, such as OppenheimerFunds, Inc., Babson Capital Management, LLC, Baring Asset Management and First Mercantile Trust Company. |
1 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Annual Reports
