Royal London appointed IBM for technology infrastructure and cut hundreds of jobs, sources said. Adjusted first-half profit was £187 million.
Chief Technology Officer James Sandell told technology staff in September about the IBM partnership, sources told The Register.
Redundancies are expected by the end of December, the sources said.
Royal London reported an adjusted group operating profit of £187 million in the first half of 2026, up 13 percent. Chief Executive Barry O'Dwyer stated that "when we do well, our customers share in that success."
The customer-owned company distributed £199 million to eligible customers through ProfitShare in April. Reviews posted on Glassdoor in October cited hundreds of roles being eliminated in technology operations, The Register reported.
Royal London said the partnership gives it access to specialist capability, scale, and experience, while the customer-owned company remains accountable for service delivery.
"We recognise that as Royal London is going through a period of transformation, this has raised questions and concerns for some colleagues," the company said. IBM had not commented.
What the reports leave out is the exact number of retained roles and the contract value. Retaining regulatory accountability means the remaining staff must manage an outside vendor doing the work the company just stopped doing itself.
Sources
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