11 Mar 2021

• Operating result reached € 5.2 billion (+0.3%), supported by the positive contributions of P&C, Asset Management and Holding and Other Business Segment
• Total gross written premiums reached € 70.7 billion (+0.5%), with resilient and profitable P&C premiums and high quality Life net inflows at € 12.1 billion. Best-in- class Combined Ratio at 89.1% (-3.5 p.p.) and excellent Life New Business Margin at 3.94%
• Net profit was € 1,744 million (-34.7%), impacted by one-offs and impairments on investments mainly in the first half of the year. Excluding the expenses of the Extraordinary International Fund for Covid-19 and the liability management transaction, adjusted net profit² amounted to € 2,076 million (-12.7%)
• Excellent capital position was confirmed with the Solvency Ratio at 224%, benefiting from record capital generation standing at € 4 billion
• Proposed dividend per share of € 1.47, split into two tranches of € 1.01 and € 0.46, respectively

Generali Group CEO Philippe Donnet commented: “Today we are presenting excellent results, obtained in an unprecedented context due to the crisis generated by the pandemic. It confirms the greater resilience of Generali compared to our peers in the sector, both from a technical point of view and its capital position. For the second consecutive year, we have achieved the Group’s best ever operating result and, also thanks to the further growth of the dividend, we continue to create value for all of our stakeholders. We have entered the final year of our strategic plan and are well positioned to achieve all of the objectives of ‘Generali 2021’. We have defined and implemented a new organizational structure to ensure, not only the success of this plan, but to also prepare for the next strategic cycle. The Group has accelerated its business transformation to guarantee that we have a distribution model that increasingly blends both physical and digital and, thanks to the innovative spirit of our employees and agents, ensures that we are now closer to our customers than ever before. Finally, I am very proud that in the critical moment of the crisis, Generali took immediate action with our Extraordinary International Fund and other high impact initiatives to support the communities and territories in which we operate.”

Milan – At a meeting chaired by Gabriele Galateri di Genola, the Assicurazioni Generali Board of Directors approved the consolidated financial statements and the Parent Company’s draft financial statements for the year 2020.

The Group’s operating result was, for the second consecutive year, its best-ever performance, reaching € 5,208 million (€ 5,192 million FY2019). The impact of Covid-19 on the operating result was estimated at € - 123 million³.

The growth of the operating result from the P&C and Asset Management segments, also thanks to the contribution of recent acquisitions, and the Holding and other activities more than compensated for the lower contribution of the Life segment, which was mainly due to the continued acceleration of provisions for guarantees to policyholders in Switzerland.

The Life and P&C segments confirmed excellent technical profitability, demonstrated by the New Business Margin at 3.94% (+0.06 p.p.) and the improvement of the Combined Ratio to 89.1% (-3.5 p.p.).

The significant increase of the operating result in the Asset Management segment was underpinned by the development of the multi-boutique platform and higher performance fees generated by the strong investment performance.

The Group non-operating result amounted to € -1,848 million (€ -1,581 million FY2019). It was impacted by impairments on available for sale financial assets resulting from the negative performance of the financial markets, particularly in the first half of the year, as well as a € 93 million impairment on goodwill related to the Life business in Switzerland. It was also impacted by one-off effects such as the € 100 million cost for the Extraordinary International Fund⁴ for Covid-19, the € 94 million expense from the liability management transaction and, in France, the extraordinary obligatory contribution to the healthcare system, requested to the insurance sector, for € 64 million. The lower incidence of interest expense on financial debt was positive, thanks to the debt optimisation strategy, which continued in 2020.

Net profit was € 1,744 million (€ 2,670 million FY2019), impacted by € 332 million deriving from the aforementioned liability management transaction, from the contribution of the Extraordinary International Fund for Covid-19 and from disposals, as well as € 287 million of impairments on investments mainly in the first half of the year. The adjusted net profit5 amounted to € 1,926 million (-12.1%). Excluding also the expenses of the Covid-19 fund⁶ and the liability management transaction⁷, the adjusted net profit amounted to € 2,076 million (-12.7%).

Gross written premiums of the Group amounted to € 70,704 million, a slight increase compared to last year (+0.5%), thanks to the contribution of the Life segment. Premiums in the P&C segment remained stable on equivalent terms. In line with the objectives of the ‘Generali 2021’ strategy, social and environmental products counted for € 16.9 billion of total premiums (+11.2%). Life net inflows were confirmed at excellent levels, equal to € 12.1 billion (-10.5%) and concentrated in unit-linked and protection for 93% of the Group’s total. Life Technical Reserves increased to € 385 billion (+4.2%).

The Group had Total Assets Under Management equal to € 664 billion (+5.4%).

The Group shareholders’ equity amounted to € 30,029 million (+5.9%). The change is mainly due to the result of the period attributable to the Group, the distribution of the dividend and the change in other profits or losses recognised to shareholders’ equity (change in AFS reserves).

The RoE stood at 7.7% (-4.7 p.p.).

The Group confirmed an excellent capital position, with the Solvency Ratio stable at 224%. The strong recovery compared to 9M2020 was mainly due to the positive impact deriving from the extension of the internal model for operational risks, the upswing in financial markets and the very positive contribution of normalised capital generation. The latter applies to the whole of 2020 and reached a record level of € 4 billion.

Net Holding cash flows grew to a record level of approximately € 3.7 billion, benefitting from solid remittances from subsidiaries, the successful implementation of capital management initiatives, lower incidence of interest expenses and a number of favourable tax impacts.