Genworth Announces Sale of Tax and Accounting Advisor Unit to Cetera Financial Group

With the sale of GFIS, Genworth will focus on its core turnkey asset management businesses within Genworth Financial Wealth Management. "This sale allows Wealth Management to continue to provide strong solutions and support for all our independent advisors while GFIS moves to a company dedicated to its long-term development," said Michael D. Fraizer, Genworth chief executive officer. "This is another step in our ongoing efforts to strengthen Genworth's capital flexibility and risk buffers, optimize our business mix around leadership positions, and enhance shareholder value."

"This transaction creates significant strategic benefits for our business and our advisors," said Gurinder S. Ahluwalia, president and chief executive of Genworth Financial Wealth Management. "Cetera's value proposition focused on distinct markets is nicely aligned with GFIS' tax and accounting focus. Of course, we continue our commitment at Genworth Wealth Management to help advisors grow their businesses through investment solutions, industry-leading practice management, and back-office services. We can now focus 100% on serving our clients – financial advisors and third party broker-dealers – including GFIS as it becomes part of Cetera."

Through a network of nearly 2,000 independent tax and accounting professionals and financial advisors, Genworth Financial Investment Services has specialized in helping tax and accounting professionals successfully integrate wealth management into their practices. GFIS was founded in 1981 and has been a part of Genworth since 1998.

Cetera is one of the largest independent broker-dealer networks in the U.S., serving approximately 5,000 financial advisors and more than 700 financial institutions through its three distinct broker-dealer platforms, Financial Network Investment Corporation, Multi-Financial Securities Corporation and PrimeVest Financial Services Inc.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements contained in this release that are not historical facts as well as statements identified by words such as expects, anticipates, intends, plans, believes, seeks, estimates, or words of similar meaning. These statements are based on our current beliefs or expectations and are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and changes in circumstances, many of which are beyond our control. Actual results may differ materially from these expectations due to changes in global political, economic, business, competitive, market and regulatory factors.

About Genworth

Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) is a leading Fortune 500 insurance holding company dedicated to helping people secure their financial lives, families and futures. Genworth has leadership positions in offerings that assist consumers in protecting themselves, investing for the future and planning for retirement -- including life insurance, long term care insurance, financial protection coverages, and independent advisor-based wealth management -- and mortgage insurance that helps consumers achieve home ownership while assisting lenders in managing their risk and capital.

Genworth has approximately 6,400 employees and operates through three divisions: Insurance and Wealth Management, which includes U.S. Life Insurance, Wealth Management, and International Protection segments; Mortgage Insurance, which includes U.S. and International Mortgage Insurance segments; and the Corporate and Runoff division. Its products and services are offered through financial intermediaries, advisors, independent distributors and sales specialists. Genworth Financial, Inc., which traces its roots back to 1871, became a public company in 2004 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. For more information, visit genworth.com. From time to time, Genworth Financial, Inc. releases important information via postings on its corporate website. Accordingly, investors and other interested parties are encouraged to enroll to receive automatic email alerts and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds regarding new postings. Enrollment information is found under the "Investors" section of genworth.com.

SOURCE Genworth