SCOR profits hike 30% in Q1
Reinsurer SCOR posted a strong set of results for the first quarter of 2015 with a jump in profits and growth.
Its profits hiked 30 percent to €175 million in the first quarter of 2015, compared with €135 million in the first quarter of 2014.
SCOR’s gross written premiums (GWP) also jumped to €3.1 billion in the first quarter of 2015, an increase of 17 percent compared with €2.7 billion in the same period of the prior year. At constant exchange rates, premium growth was 5.1 percent.
SCOR said the growth was driven by the contribution of global property and casualty (P&C) business and its global life business.
Its P&C division posted a 16.3 percent increase in GWP, or 5.2 percent at constant exchange rates, to €1.4 billion in the quarter, driven by US dollar-based growth, particularly with global clients. The division also benefitted from the client focus initiative in the US market, said SCOR.
Within the division, its combined ratio deteriorated slightly to 89.1 percent in the quarter, compared with 88.9 percent in the first quarter of 2014.
Its global life division posted a 17.7 percent increase in GWP, or 5 percent at constant exchange rates, to €1.7 billion in the first quarter of 2015. This was driven by its first significant longevity transaction in the Canadian market, expansion of its footprint in Asia and growth in protection key markets.
Denis Kessler, chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of SCOR, said: "The very high quality results recorded by SCOR in the first quarter of 2015 confirm the relevance of the strategic orientations chosen.
“The group's business continued to expand in the first quarter, delivering strong technical results for both SCOR global life and SCOR global P&C. With the positive P&C renewals in January and April, the expansion of SCOR Global Life and the continuation of SCOR Global Investments' active asset management policy, the Group once again demonstrates that its business model enables it to achieve its profitability and solvency objectives, as set out in the ‘Optimal Dynamics’ plan."
