Brighthouse Financial traces its roots to Travelers Insurance Company, which was founded in Hartford, Conn., in 1863 and started selling life insurance in 1923 and annuities in 1938 – the two products still at the core of its business today.
MetLife acquired Travelers Life insurance Company and Travelers Life & Annuity Company in 2005, and spun off a large portion of its retail business to create the new Brighthouse Financial brand in 2017. The company, which is now headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., has over 2 million customers and specializes in annuities and life insurance.