Clive Cowdery's fifth and final deal at the helm of Resolution has seen him sell the business to closed-book rival Pearl for close to £5bn and walk away with the brand name plus £149m in cash.

Resolution's board has agreed to the sale without getting Pearl, which was acting in conjunction with Royal London, to up its offer of 720p per share.

The deal comes after a hectic period in which Cowdery, who has a 3% stake in Resolution, first recommended a merger with Friends Provident back in July, then a takeover by Standard Life, before plumping for the Pearl deal.

This final arrangement still depends on the backing of three-quarters of Resolution's shareholders at an extraordinary general meeting in January. But Pearl already owns 25.93% of Resolution and Resolution's directors, who between them own 3.7%, have agreed to back the takeover.

The transaction will create a combined group with assets under management of £85bn, making it a top 10 life insurer.

The deal should also keep the Scottish Provident brand alive. Royal London, which is behind Edinburgh-based pension provider Scottish Life, offshore provider Scottish Life International and protection brand Bright Grey, is to contribute upwards of £1.25bn to the deal. It return it will be handed Scottish Provident and Scottish Provident International, as well as a portion of Resolution's back book of business, much of which was formerly run by Abbey and is administered out of Glasgow. But it has pledged not to merge these businesses with its existing operations.

The sale is Resolution's fifth transaction in the closed life fund sector. Since 2004 Resolution has acquired RSA Life UK, Swiss Life UK, Britannic Group and Abbey's UK life businesses.

Cowdery, who founded and is now chairman of Resolution, said: "Resolution's success has been achieved by combining a committed board, management and staff with supportive shareholders and constructive regulators."