A man displays Canadian 20-dollar bills in Washington on January 14, 2013A man displays Canadian 20-dollar bills in Washington on January 14, 2013

British financial services provider Standard Life has agreed to sell its Canadian activities to Manulife of Canada for £2.2 billion ($3.6 billion, 2.8 billion Euros), it said Thursday.

"Standard Life plc today announces the sale of its Canadian business ... to The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Manulife Financial Corporation, for a total cash consideration of Can$4.0 billion," it confirmed in a statement to the London Stock Exchange, after Manulife had announced the deal overnight in Toronto.

Edinburgh-based Standard Life will return £1.75 billion of capital to shareholders, or 73 pence per share, following completion of the deal. The two companies also established a global agreement to distribute each other's products.