LONDON (Reuters) - Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) (SLA.L) has agreed to sell the bulk of its insurance business to Phoenix Group (PHNX.L) for 3.24 billion pounds ($4.5 billion), allowing it to focus on savings and investment products. SLA will receive 2.3 billion pounds in cash and a 19.9 percent stake in Phoenix, which is raising 1 billion pounds to fund the deal to become Europe’s largest manager of books of mature business from insurance companies. The sale is part of a long-standing drive...

British insurer Aviva (AV.L) plans to launch a new product to cover small and medium-sized businesses against cyber attacks later this year as part of an expansion of its specialist insurance division, its chief executive for UK insurance said. Aviva, which made 3 billion pounds of operating profit in 2016, also wants to take on the risk of more company pension schemes and is mulling the future of operations in several countries, including India, Andy Briggs told Reuters. Aviva, which traces...