Office address: 751 Broad Street, Newark, NJ 07102
Website: prudential.com
Year established: 1875
Company type: financial services
Employees: 38,200+
Expertise: life insurance, annuities, retirement planning, investment management, mutual funds, ETFs, group insurance, wealth management, institutional asset management, financial advisory services
Parent company: N/A
Key people: Andrew Sullivan (CEO), Yanela Frias (CFO), Ann Kappler (general counsel), Vicki Walia (chief people officer), Scott Case (head of global technology and operations), Jacques Chappuis (PGIM CEO), Timothy Schmidt (chief investment officer)
Financing status: publicly traded corporation
Prudential Financial is a Newark-based financial services firm that operates across the US, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. The company provides life insurance, investment management, and retirement planning products. PGIM, its investment arm, manages $1.6 trillion in assets as of June 2025.
Prudential traces its roots to 1875 when John Dryden founded The Prudential Friendly Society in Newark, NJ. Dryden believed working-class families deserved access to life insurance and offered policies for just 3 cents a week.
"The Rock" debuted as the company's corporate symbol in 1896 to represent strength and stability. The firm issued its first group insurance policy in 1916 and provided the first group pension to Cleveland Public Library in 1928.
Prudential Financial continued to grow in the following decades and reached major milestones along the way. During World War II, the company donated its downtown Newark building to support government efforts.
The iconic "Get a Piece of the Rock" campaign launched in 1971 and helped Prudential become the largest insurer in the world by 1975. The Prudential Foundation was established in 1976, and the firm partnered with Sony in 1979 to enter the Japanese market.
The late 1990s and early 2000s brought bold moves as Prudential Financial pursued worldwide expansion. In 1997, the company created Bowie Bonds, an innovative security tied to David Bowie's music royalties, and established Prudential of Brazil.
The firm went public on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 2001. Despite the 2008 global financial crisis, Prudential remained stable and acquired Star and Edison in 2010 to strengthen its position.
In 2016, PGIM (Prudential Global Investment Management) was introduced as the global brand for the company's investment management arm. The firm integrated AI into underwriting in 2022 and launched "Blueprints to Black Wealth," a financial inclusion program, in 2023.
In 2025, Prudential celebrated its 150th anniversary and expanded its partnership with LPL Financial to introduce an insurance overlay retirement income strategy for advisors.
Prudential Financial offers investment products and services for individual and institutional clients:
Prudential provides digital tools like spend-vs-invest calculators and retirement planning resources for investors. PGIM serves institutional clients, including pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and central banks worldwide.
According to Prudential Financial, employees shape the company's culture and drive innovation. The firm reports that respect and belonging are central to its workplace environment. Its core values are:
Prudential reports that employee well-being is a company priority. The firm offers family-friendly policies and flexible benefits, including:
The company also supports diversity through Business Resource Groups, first launched in 1993. Prudential Financial now operates eight BRGs with nearly 6,000 members across the firm.
Andrew Sullivan serves as CEO of Prudential Financial. Before this role, he led the firm's international businesses and joined Prudential in 2011 from CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield. Sullivan earned an executive MBA from the University of Delaware and a degree from the US Naval Academy.
Prudential Financial's executive officers guide the company's strategy and operations:
The leadership team at Prudential has decades of experience in financial services and investment management. Together, they guide Prudential's strategy to deliver value for clients and communities.
Prudential Financial's group insurance CMO Christina Pihos recently sat down with InvestmentNews to discuss new research on employee benefits. The study found that 85 percent of employers believe they offer modern benefits, while only 59 percent of employees agree. Prudential uses these insights to help employers turn benefits into a strategic tool for talent retention and attraction.
Prudential Financial also released its 2025 Global Retirement Pulse Survey, which polled 4,200 mass affluent adults across the US, Mexico, Brazil, and Japan. The study showed that 89 percent of US respondents feel confident about covering retirement costs, yet only one-third have a written plan.
Advised clients showed 94 percent confidence as well, compared to 83 percent without an advisor. The firm sees this gap as a sign of growing demand for retirement guidance.
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Genworth Financial Inc.'s decision to leave the variable annuities business could herald more departures by other peripheral players this year.
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