Ageas reports 2020 results

Ageas reports 2020 results

• Excellent Group results in a challenging Covid-19 context
• Strong Insurance performance both in Life and Non-Life mitigated lower contribution of net capital gains
• Resilient commercial performance
• Proposed gross cash dividend of EUR 2.65 per share

Net Result	The 2020 Group net result stood at EUR 1,141 million, thanks to a strong underwriting performance and the positive impact of the FRESH transactions on the General account Net result in Non-Life (including Reinsurance) grew significantly to EUR 391 million thanks to a strong performance across all segments and a lower claims frequency compensating for the impact of the adverse weather in Belgium and UK Life net result of EUR 570 million was affected by Covid-19 related impact on the investment result and net capital gains. Fourth quarter Group net result stood at EUR 147 million compared to EUR 102 million in the fourth quarter of 2019
Inflows	Group inflows (at 100%) down 1% to EUR 35.6 billion - Group inflows at Ageas’s part at EUR 14.5 billion Life inflows (at 100%) down 1% to EUR 28.8 billion marked by strong recovery in Asia compensating for reduced activity in Europe Non-Life inflows (at 100%) were up 1 % at EUR 6.8 billion Fourth quarter Group inflows (at 100%) up 6% to EUR 7.7 billion thanks to growth in Asia
Operating Performance	Strong Combined ratio at 91.3 % Operating Margin Guaranteed at 90 bps driven by the underwriting performance Improvement of the Operating Margin Unit-Linked at 29 bps
Balance Sheet	Shareholders’ equity at EUR 11.6 billion or EUR 61.80 per share Group Solvency IIageas ratio remained strong at 193% - Regulatory PIM SolvencyII ratio at 199% General Account Total Liquid Assets as at 31 December 2020 at EUR 1.2 billion Life Technical Liabilities excluding shadow accounting of the consolidated entities stood at EUR 73.7 billion
Dividend	§   The proposed grosss cash dividend of EUR 2.65 represents a 56% pay-out ratio, fully in line with Ageas’s dividend policy

A complete overview of the figuresand comparison with previous year can be found on page 5 of this press release and on the Ageas website.
Key figures and main highlights on the segments can be found in the Annexes of this press release

Ageas CEO Hans De Cuyper said: “We can be proud of the way we navigated through a challenging 2020.  Our top line revenue decreased only marginally compared to 2019. This is impressive, considering that our distribution is mainly “customer facing”, through agents, brokers and bancassurance! I want to thank our people and partners for their resilience and dedication, serving our customers remotely and bringing in new clients in difficult circumstances. Despite the Covid-19 context, we delivered excellent results, benefitting more than ever from the geographic diversification, our well-balanced product portfolio, our solid balance sheet and prudent management.  2020 was the second year of our 3-year strategic plan Connect21 and it was important that we kept our minds firmly focused on our strategic goals, targets and ESG commitments that remain an ongoing priority for the long term. The excellent result, our strong balance sheet, the comfortable cash position and stable solvency margin, allow us to propose a gross cash dividend of EUR 2.65 per share to our shareholders.

Attachment

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