Manulife Releases 2023 Sustainability Report and Public Accountability Statement

Report shares firm's continued progress toward generating long-term value for its business, its communities, its shareholders, and the planet

C$ unless otherwise stated      TSX/NYSE/PSE: MFC  SEHK: 945

TORONTO, May 8, 2024 /CNW/ - Manulife (TSX: MFC) today released its 2023 Sustainability Report and its 2023 Public Accountability Statement, detailing its approach, performance, and achievements relative to its three Impact Agenda pillars: empowering sustained health and well-being to support the journey towards a better life, driving inclusive economic opportunities to create a more even playing field, and accelerating a sustainable future to preserve the planet we all share.

The firm's 2023 Sustainability Report includes the following results Manulife accomplished during the year¹:

Empowering sustained health and well-being

• Provided over 2.1+ million customers globally with access to our behavioural insurance platforms
• Increased mental health benefits by 20% for our Canadian employees, from $10,000 to $12,000
• Ranked in the 89th percentile for employee engagement, a top quartile ranking among financial services peers²
• Hosted the inaugural Longer. Healthier. Better. longevity symposium bringing together life insurance brokers, leadership from reinsurance companies, media, and government officials to hear from world-leading experts in science, healthcare, and education

Driving inclusive economic opportunity

• Globally, 99% of pay was received by women as a percentage of men, and in North America, 101% of pay was received by racially and ethnically diverse populations, demonstrating our commitment to gender and racial pay equity
• Sold over 668,000 specialized, affordable policies within our emerging markets in Asia, supporting financial resilience for traditionally underserved populations³
• Contributed a total of $27.9 million to our communities around the globe
• Became the first insurer in Indonesia to offer life insurance for people living with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

______________________________

¹ Please see our Sustainability Report for further details about our performance metrics, including the methodology for calculating and defining green investments. 

² Based on our 2023 Gallup survey.

³ Policies sold in emerging markets across Asia including Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Affordable policies have been assessed for accessible price points that are specific to each market.

Accelerating a sustainable future

• Increased our General Account's sustainable investment portfolio to $48.3 billion
• Released our Climate Action Implementation Plan, outlining our approach to managing the climate transition across our operations, General Account investments, and products and services
• Announced the first close of our Forest Climate Strategy, which offers qualified investors the ability to participate in natural climate solution markets
• Manulife Investment was again named the largest manager of natural capital in IPE Real Asset's Top 25 Natural Capital Managers ranking⁴

"As a global insurer and asset manager, Manulife grounds itself in the principles of longevity to empower longer, healthier lives for our customers and for our planet," said Sarah Chapman, Manulife's Global Chief Sustainability Officer. "We are proud of our achievements during 2023, and we remain steadfast in our belief that collective action can accelerate change. As we look to 2024 and beyond, we continue to be guided by our Impact Agenda and our global strategy to make great progress for our customers, communities, and the future we all share." 

Not all offerings are available in all jurisdictions. Please visit manulife.com/sustainability to access the reports and to learn more about the firm's Impact Agenda.

_________________________________

⁴ IPE research as of 1/29/2024. Ranking is based on total Natural Capital AUM, which includes forestry/timberland and agriculture/farmland AUM. Firms were asked to provide AUM and the as of dates vary from 12/31/2022 to 12/31/2023.

About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we provide financial advice and insurance, operating as Manulife across Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States. Through Manulife Investment Management, the global brand for our Global Wealth and Asset Management segment, we serve individuals, institutions, and retirement plan members worldwide. At the end of 2023, we had more than 38,000 employees, over 98,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving over 35 million customers. We trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges, and under '945' in Hong Kong. Not all offerings are available in all jurisdictions. For additional information, please visit manulife.com.

SOURCE Manulife Financial Corporation

Media Contact: Luke Shane, Manulife, 857-206-2351, lshane@manulife