Page 3 -

1: Introduction: Messianic Logic

At the beginning of 2004 The
Standard Life Assurance Company
was about to embark on a journey
which would ultimately result in the
company successfully
demutualising and listing on the London Stock Exchange on 10
July 2006 with the biggest UK Initial Public Offering (IPO) of that
year.

In 2000, when the stock market boom was at its peak, Standard
Life was a mutual, not a plc. It was run for its policyholders rather
than shareholders and like all life insurance companies it invested
the premiums it received in other financial assets such as shares,
bonds, and property. However, Standard Life had long had a policy
of investing in the stock market and in 2000 its firm commitment to
equities appeared to be paying dividends.

Early 2000 witnessed an opportunistic and ultimately unsuccessful
demutualisation attempt organised and led by a Monaco-based
fund manager Fred Woollard.

It appeared that the body and soul of Standard Life was being
attacked from outside. A spontaneous platform, bringing the
company together, encompassing staff, policyholders, clients and
the general public developed to fight the demutualisation. Marches
in Edinburgh were organised and T-shirts were printed for
customers showing support for Standard Life. However, these T-
shirts were hijacked and worn by staff, leading the company to
change its dress regulations to allow people to wear them at work.
The result was that where:

“Woollard brought out defensiveness. This defence
turned into attack. He needed 75% approval for a
special resolution. He got 46%.”
Sandy Crombie

Having successfully fought off this attempt to demutualise
Standard Life was left facing an increasingly turbulent