[2] Founded in 1857 in Zurich as the Schweizerische Lebensversicherungs und Rentenanstalt cooperative, the company entered the Swiss stock market in 1997 and adopted its current name in 2002.

In 2023 the group declared an adjusted profit from operations of CHF 1.50 billion, a 1% increase compared to the previous year.

Between 1866 and 1987, Rentenanstalt expanded to Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Spain, Luxembourg, and Italy.

[8] In 1997, under the management of Manfred Zobl, Rentenanstalt changed from a mutual into a publicly traded proprietary company,[9] with Rentenstalt/Swiss Life shares debuting in the Swiss Market Index in 1998.

Swiss Life then embarked on an expansionary strategy, acquiring Livit, Banca del Gottardo, the Lloyd Continental and UTO Albis in 1999, and Schweizerische Treuhandgesellschaft in 2000, and taking over the real estate properties of Oscar Weber Holding AG in 2001.

Besides the three core markets Switzerland, France and Germany, the Group separately discloses its cross-border segments International and Asset Managers.

[citation needed] The German branch of Swiss Life, founded in 1866, is based in Munich and offers private and corporate clients services in pensions saving and financial security.

[citation needed] With locations in Switzerland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Hongkong and Singapore, Swiss Life International offers Private placement life insurance (a form of investment with an insurance wrapper) for high-net-worth individuals in Europe and Asia, and provides employee benefits for large corporate clients.

All partners donate their net gains from redistributed CO2 levies to the foundation, which in turns supports projects helping small and medium-sized enterprises to reach voluntary target agreement with the Energy Agency of the Swiss Private Sector (EnAW), develop operational energy savings and climate protection systems.

The Corporate Responsibility Report focuses on business activities, society, employees and the environment and is guided by the principle of materiality.

[32] Since the 2015/16 season, Swiss Life has been supporting the ice hockey club ZSC Lions as general sponsor.