NN Group sees war dent sales in Central Europe

Operations in Central Europe are suffering a short-term hit to new policy sales in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but no dent on the existing portfolio is likely, the CEO of  NN Group David Knibbe (pictured) has said.

"Of course the war has an enormous impact," Knibbe said during an interview for Bloomberg television. "So short-term, there could be some negative impact on sales."

Existing portfolios are "holding up well" and Knibbe's lesson from the Covid era is that cancellations aren't likely. "It doesn't lead to people cancelling insurance products, it is more of a short-term new business thing," he said of his group's operations across Central Europe.

Covid has done more than just prove that resilience for current portfolios, it has driven risk-awareness across European markets more broadly where insurers had long lamented under-penetration, Knibbe noted. That could buffer downside throughout any shift in the cycle, he suggested.

"There is an underlying positive trend, which is that there is a need for protection: families and households have become more concerned," Knibbe said. "That trend is still there and that is also what we have seen in our portfolios.

"Overall, I think we still believe we can sustainably grow our business."

Knibbe broadly brushed off questions about inflation, pointing past concerns on claims cost to the expected benefits of a rise in interest rates to the investment result.

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