The Prudential was founded in Newark, New Jersey, in 1873, as the Widows and Orphans Friendly Society. It officially began business in 1875 when the name was changed to The Prudential Friendly Society.

The Prudential Insurance Company of America has been part of the Canadian financial scene since 1909, when offices were opened in Hamilton, London, Stratford, Toronto and Montreal. At the end of 1909, The Prudential was operating in 25 cities across Canada with 125 staff managers and 422 agents who sold $11 million of insurance and helped build assets of $250,000. By 1929, The Prudential was among the leading insurance companies in Canada.

Sales in Canada had reached almost $108 million by the company’s 75th birthday. The time had come for a Canadian head office. On Friday, December 1, 1950, employees attended the official opening of the Canadian head office, located at King and Bay Streets in downtown Toronto. In 1985, the Canadian head office moved to The Consilium, a joint venture project in Scarborough, Ontario, where it is now located. The Consilium complex includes three office towers with plans for a fourth.
 

1. The Prudential's Canadian Head Office opened at King and Bay Streets in downtown Toronto in Decmber 1950. The occasion also marked The Prudentials 75th anniversary. 2. The Consillium, the present location of The Prudentials Canadian Head Office, opened in Scarborough, Ontario, in 1985. the project includes three towers, with plans for a fourth.

The Prudential Insurance Company of America is one of the largest financial institutions in the world. In Canada, The Prudential employs more than 2,800 people in its head office in Scarborough, Ontario, and in over 100 offices from coast to coast. The company offers a full range of group and individual life, health, home, auto, travel and disability insurance as well as investment products such as RRSPs, RRIFs, mutual funds, fixed-term investments and commercial and residential mortgages. It also has an extensive real estate portfolio.

The Prudential’s major real estate investments include 95 Wellington West, a 330,000 square foot office building in downtown Toronto; the Twin Atria Building in Edmonton; and The Consilium, a joint-ownership, mixed-use project in Scarborough’s City Centre. The company also has a minority ownership position in Bentall Corporation. The Prudential’s Property Investments Department also manages real estate assets for institutional clients.

The company has an investment portfolio in Canada of close to five billion dollars containing various government and corporate bonds. The security investments department specializes in corporate, public and private placement debt obligation and in common stock investments on behalf of the company’s insurance and pension operations.