Sovereign Life Group has been formed to bring together established specialist businesses from across the later life lending market, including Age Partnership, Pure Retirement and Advise Wise.

The group combines expertise across customer advice, lifetime mortgage lending, adviser technology and adviser support.

The new group is designed to support better experiences and outcomes for customers, advisers and partners through coordinated investment in technology, operational capability, market insight and service improvement.

Each business within Sovereign Life Group will continue to operate with its own leadership team, governance and regulatory responsibilities, with regulated firms retaining their own boards, senior management accountability and responsibility for customer outcomes.

The group said the launch comes at an important moment for the later life lending sector, with evolving customer needs, changing market conditions and the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Later Life Mortgages Market Study all reinforcing the need for firms to deliver good outcomes, effective competition and well-evidenced advice journeys.

As part of the new group structure, Jonathan Thirkill will serve as group chief executive officer, with Andrew Thirkill taking the role of founder and group chair.

Jonathan Thirkill (pictured) group CEO of Sovereign Life Group, commented: “Sovereign Life Group brings together businesses with complementary strengths.

“By coordinating investment and expertise across the group, while preserving clear governance and accountability within each regulated entity, we believe we can support better customer outcomes, respond to market change with greater resilience and agility, and help the later life lending market continue to evolve responsibly.”

Andrew Thirkill, founder and group chair of Sovereign Life Group, said:

“When Age Partnership was founded more than 20 years ago, I saw an opportunity to build greater awareness of equity release and the many benefits and protection it can provide for customers in later life.

“The market has improved significantly since then, but the need for clear information, trusted advice and good customer outcomes remains as important as ever.

“Sovereign Life Group is a natural next step, bringing together specialist businesses with the capability and expertise to support customers, advisers and partners across the later life market.”