Standard Life will move closer to scrapping its once-cherished mutual status tomorrow when it unveils details of turnaround efforts and tells 2.4 million members what they stand to gain by backing plans to go public.
In an information pack sent out to policyholders ahead of a ballot on its future next month, Europe's largest mutual insurer will for the first time detail its results for the past two years, including an expected substantial loss in 2004.
Policyholders are expected to back the summer flotation, set to be Britain's largest since telecoms firm Orange listed in 2001 and seen raising over one billion pounds.
Analysts estimate Standard Life will have a market value of four billion to six billion pounds, placing it just above Friends Provident, which demutualised in 2001 and is Britain's number four listed life player.
But investors say they will be looking for evidence the Scottish insurer, badly hit by a stock market fall between 2000 and 2003, is on track to turn itself around.
"First of all we need to understand the structure of the demutualisation, how much capital will be raised and what are the prospects for Standard Life in its reformed condition," said life insurance analyst Ned Cazalet.
"Everything else is down to price, sentiment and execution."
Standard Life shocked rivals and customers two years ago when it announced plans to go public, saying tough new funding rules and a declining market for its flagship with-profits products forced it to turn to the stock market for cash.
The U-turn angered some members of the Scottish group, which only four years previously spent over £10 million to preserve its mutual status from attacks by "carpetbaggers". At that point, its value was estimated at up to £18 billion.
The insurer may hope to sway some disgruntled members with generous windfall payments, which analysts say should be between £500 and £1,000.
Expected plans by Standard Life to ring-fence its with-profits fund - ensuring policyholder returns are not diminished by demutualisation - could also ease concerns.
A strong turnout in May is likely to be seen as a vote of confidence in management including CEO Sandy Crombie, who announced the demutualisation plans after a strategic review in 2004 and says the insurer must list if it intends to grow.
Three-quarters of voting members have to approve demutualisation for it to go through on May 31. Standard Life, which currently publishes only its sales figures, is expected to outline a substantial 2004 loss with a recovery into the black for 2005.
Analysts said they hope this week's numbers will give an indication of past errors as well as future strategy.
"One of the issues is what sins of the past there might be - how much of the potential profit in the product was given away to policyholders in previous years and whether there is a bit of a hole there that needs covering with new capital," said analyst Kevin Ryan at ING.
Since its 2004 review, Standard Life has moved out of some pension products, cut commissions to agents and slashed payouts on its policies to cut costs and reduce the strain on its capital reserves.
But even with a new focus on self-invested personal pensions (SIPP), stiff competition in the sector continues to weigh. In 2005, UK sales rose three per cent - sluggish by comparison with strong sales at rivals Friends Provident and Prudential.