John Hancock Financial

On April 21, 1862, the charter of the John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company was approved by John A. Andrew, governor of Massachusetts.[1]

There was not always a standardization for how the company name has been referenced. For example, a John Hancock advertisement from 1912 refers to the company as "John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company, but some John Hancock advertisements and newspaper articles from the 1930s refer to it as the "John Hancock Life Insurance Company."[2] However, 1940s sources again refer to the company as the "John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company."

In a July 2, 1998, Boston Herald story, Stephen L. Brown, a John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co. chairman, is quoted, saying "We have always said quite clearly that we are not for sale." This quote was an attempt to kill speculation about possible deals with BankBoston or Fleet Financial Group. "There are simply no merger talks going on."

In 2000, led by David F. D'Alessandro, the company "demutualized," meaning that "John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company" formally ceased to exist, and a new company named "John Hancock Financial Services, Inc." came into existence. Policyholders received shares in the new company in exchange for giving up ownership in the old. Life insurance continued to be sold by an entity known as the "John Hancock Variable Life Insurance Company", a subsidiary of John Hancock Financial Services Inc. On January 27, 2000, shares of Hancock stock started to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol JHF.

On September 29, 2003, Manulife Financial announced its intent to acquire John Hancock for $10.4 billion. The merged entity would be led by D'Alessandro, but he would step down in June 2004. The sale also included a Canadian subsidiary of John Hancock, Maritime Life; it was integrated into Manulife's Canadian operations.[3][4][5]

The current headquarters is located in the John Hancock building at 197 Clarendon Street in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood.[6]

In a memo to all employees, CEO Marianne Harrison announced the company would be returning to the Back Bay section of Boston by the end of 2018. The 1,100 employees will be moving into 200 Berkeley Street, sometimes known as the "Old John Hancock Building" and 197 Clarendon Street. John Hancock no longer has a presence in the Back Bay tower at 200 Clarendon Street, still known by many Bostonians as the Hancock Tower.[6]

John Hancock created an index called the "John Hancock Investor Sentiment Index" in 2011.[7] The company describes the index as a "quarterly measure of investors' views on a range of investment choices, life goals and economic outlook."[8]

In October 2017, Marianne Harrison became the first female president and chief executive officer of John Hancock. She earned a reported $4.4 million in compensation in 2017.[9]

• John Hancock Bowl, a college football bowl game the company previously sponsored in El Paso, Texas

• Official website