John Hancock Asset Management Appoints New Management Team for Three John Hancock Portfolios

BOSTON, May 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- John Hancock Asset Management, a division of Manulife Asset Management, said today that it appointed the U.S. Core Value team led by Senior Managing Directors Walter T. McCormick and Emory W. (Sandy) Saunders, Jr. to manage three portfolios offered by John Hancock Retirement Plan Services, John Hancock Annuities, and John Hancock Life Insurance.  With the appointment, the team assumed responsibility for managing approximately $1.8 billion in assets.

The total encompasses two portfolios in the John Hancock Trust (JHT), which is made up of funds underlying Annuity and Life Insurance products, and one in JHF II, a platform made up of funds in the retail retirement plan channel.  In JHT, the U.S. Core Value Equity team will manage the Optimized All Cap Trust, which has about $1.23 billion in assets, and the Optimized Value Trust, with approximately $189 million in assets. In JHF II, the team will manage the Optimized Value Fund, with approximately $335 million in assets.  The John Hancock Trust and John Hancock Funds II boards of trustees approved the appointment at recent board meetings.

"Since joining our firm in January, Walter and Sandy have established a strong U.S. Core Value team that builds on our existing fundamental capabilities," said Christopher Conkey, CFA, Chief Investment Officer, Global Equities, Manulife Asset Management.  "We are delighted to be able to bring their depth of investment experience to our John Hancock partners' clients."

About Manulife Asset Management and John Hancock Asset Management

Manulife Asset Management™ is the global asset management arm of Manulife Financial. Manulife Asset Management and its affiliates provide comprehensive asset management solutions for institutional investors and investment funds in key markets around the world. This investment expertise extends across a broad range of asset classes including equity, fixed income and alternative investments such as real estate, timber, farmland, as well as asset allocation strategies. As at March 31, 2011, assets under management for institutional clients were Cdn$211 billion (US$217 billion).

John Hancock Asset Management is a division of Manulife Asset Management.

About John Hancock Financial and Manulife Financial Corporation

John Hancock Financial is a unit of Manulife Financial Corporation, a leading Canadian-based financial services group serving millions of customers in 22 countries and territories worldwide. Operating as Manulife Financial in Canada and in most of Asia, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, Manulife Financial Corporation offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. For more than 120 years, clients have looked to Manulife for strong, reliable, trustworthy and forward-thinking solutions for their most significant financial decisions. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were Cdn$478 billion (US$492 billion) as at March 31, 2011.

Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial may be found on the Internet at www.manulife.com.

The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies, comprises one of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers a broad range of financial products and services, including life insurance, fixed and variable annuities, fixed products, mutual funds, 401(k) plans, long-term care insurance, college savings, and other forms of business insurance. Additional information about John Hancock may be found at www.johnhancock.com.

SOURCE John Hancock Asset Management