LONDON (Reuters) -British insurer Aviva said on Monday it had agreed to acquire the UK protection business of AIG for 460 million pounds ($563 million).

Aviva said it would buy the unit - known as AIG Life UK - from Corebridge Financial, Inc, a New York-listed subsidiary of AIG.

Amanda Blanc, CEO of Aviva, said the deal would strengthen the FTSE 100 company's position in an attractive market and help position it for "capital-light growth".

The transaction will add 1.3 million individual protection customers and 1.4 million group protection members, Aviva said, with the deal expected to close in the first half of 2024, subject to regulatory approvals.

The deal would represent around a 5 percentage point cut to Aviva's group solvency II cover ratio, the company said.

($1 = 0.8173 pounds)

(Reporting by Iain Withers, Editing by Louise Heavens)