Vienna Insurance Group’s premiums reached EUR 7.9 bn in H1 2024
Vienna Insurance Group’s robust growth in H1 2024. Gross written premiums increased by 7.9% year-over-year, reaching EUR 7.89 bn in the first half of 2024
🇪🇺 Europe Insurance News
Insurers estimate losses from Greece wildfires and European storms
Aon reports that wildfires in Greece and severe convective storms across Europe could result in hundreds of millions of dollars in losses. Beginning August 12, storms in Switzerland and Austria brought heavy rain
AM Best estimates the property catastrophe bond market ~$45 bn by mid-2024
AM Best estimates the property catastrophe bond market reached approximately $45 bn by mid-2024, marking a $3 bn increase
AXA acquired Gruppo Nobis, a retail P&C insurer in Italy
AXA announced an agreement to acquire Gruppo Nobis, a retail P&C insurance company in Italy with a diverse distribution network
ERGO generated a result of €535 mn in H1 2024
Munich Re generated a result of €284m (250m) in its ERGO field of business in Q2 and €535m (470m) in H1. Insurance revenue from insurance contracts issued in Q2 rose
Munich Re achieves profit of €3.8 bn in H1 2024
Munich Re generated a net result of €1,623 mn in the second quarter of 2024 and €3,763 mn in H1 2024. Insurance revenue from insurance contracts issued rose
Allianz robusted operating profit of €3.9 bn for Q2 2024
Allianz has reported a robust operating profit of €3.9 bn for Q2 2024, a slight increase from €3.8 bn in Q2 2023. All segments of the company contributed to this result
Global insured losses from natural catastrophes to reach $60 bn in H1 2024
Frequent small to medium events caused global insured losses from natural catastrophes to reach $60 bn in the first half of 2024, according to Swiss Re
Climate & Digitalisation are challenging traditional insurance products
Developments such as climate change and digitalisation are changing risk pools and can challenge the viability of traditional insurance products
AXA announced a €13 mn lead investment in Novocuff’s financing round
AXA IM Alts, a leader in alternative investments and AXA Investment Managers’ alternative business unit, manages over €184 bn ($197 bn) in assets
Insurtech Cowbell sequred €55 mn Series C led by Zurich
Cyber insurtech Cowbell has closed a €55 mn Series C equity round led by Zurich Insurance Group, a global multi-line insurer
S&P awarded Vienna Insurance Group an “A+” rating
Standard & Poor’s has awarded Vienna Insurance Group (VIG) an “A+” rating with a stable outlook. This ranks VIG among the top companies in the Austrian Traded Index
Natural disasters in 1H 2024: $117 bn economic & $58 bn insured losses
Aon estimated of more than $117 bn in economic losses from global natural disasters during the 1H 2024, lower than the 21st-century 1H average
Global insured losses from natural disasters to rise annually by 5-7% relative to GDP
Global insured losses from natural disasters are expected to rise annually by 5-7% relative to GDP, according to Swiss Re
Climate Change Boosts Extreme Weather: Time for Insurance to Adapt
Climate change is making severe weather more common worldwide, which greatly affects the electric grid. Insurance funding is crucial for adaptation
European financial & insurance M&A activity rebounded
M&A activity in the European financial afn insurance services industry rebounded in the first half of 2024 after a slow
Insurtech Feather sequred €6 mn in funding led by Keen Venture
Insurtech Feather, a startup offering digital insurance solutions for expats in Europe, has secured €6 mn in funding. Keen Venture Partners led the round
Insurtech Wopta Assicurazioni closed a €4.1 mn Series A funding
Wopta Assicurazioni, an insurtech MGA focused on protecting businesses and professionals from everyday risks, has closed a €4.1 mn Series A funding round
Zurich Group acquires AIG’s global personal travel insurance business
Zurich Insurance Group announced an agreement to buy AIG’s global personal travel insurance and assistance business, AIG Travel, for $600 mn
Flooding in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg will cost insurers €2 bn
The German Insurance Association (GDV) forecasts that recent flooding in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg will cost insurers about €2 bn
Global reinsurer capital in Q1 2024 increased for $695 bn
Aon reports a 4% increase in global reinsurer capital during the first quarter of 2024, reaching a new high of $695 billion
Climate insurtech IBISA raised €2.8 mn led by ARAF and Equator
Luxembourg-based climate insurtech IBISA Network has raised a €2.8 mn funding led by The Acumen Resilient Agriculture Fund (ARAF) and Equator
Cybersecurity platform YesWeHack raised €26 mn Series C led by Wendel
YesWeHack, a Bug Bounty and cybersecurity vulnerability management platform, has raised €26 mn in a Series C funding round led by Wendel
Zurich Insurance acquires 70% of indian insurer Kotak for $670 mn
Zurich Insurance Company has completed of acquiring majority stake in Kotak Mahindra General Insurance Company from Kotak Mahindra Bank
Insurtech ZA Tech, rebranded as Peak3, raised $35 mn Series A
ZA Tech, the insurance core system SaaS provider, has rebranded as Peak3 and has raised a $35 mn in Series A funding led by EQT and Alpha JWC Ventures
Severe storms & flooding impacted for insured losses in Central Europe
Severe storms and flooding have impacted Central Europe, leading to economic and insured losses in the hundreds of millions of euros
Insured Losses in Germany from floods will range from €2 bn to €3 bn
Moody’s RMS estimates that insured losses in Germany from the Central Europe Floods will likely range from €2 bn to €3 bn
Life insurers expanded the use of private loans to optimize investment portfolios
The growing use of private credit by life insurers to optimise investment portfolios and align asset allocation with product liabilities is garnering heightened attention
Insurtech Cortical will help Swiss Re for digital transformation in group insurance
AI-insurtech Cortical announced a strategic alliance with Swiss Re, a global leader in reinsurance. The collaboration aims to facilitate the adoption
UNIQA Insurance Group saw a positive developments in CEE market
UNIQA Insurance Group has published report about positive developments of the companies in CEE, which made a substantial contribution of around 50%
Insurtech Estaly raised $3.8 mn in seed funding from OneRagtim
Insurtech Estaly has raised $3.8 mn in seed funding from OneRagtime, CDG Invest, and approximately 20 angel investors
Munich Re announced a preliminary net profit of €2.1 bn for Q1 2024
Global reinsurer Munich Re has announced a preliminary net profit of €2.1 billion for Q1 of 2024, as the firm highlights a better than expected operational performance
PERILS estimated EUR 691 mn insured loss for Babet-Aline Floods & Storms
PERILS, the independent Zurich-based organisation providing industry-wide catastrophe insurance data, has disclosed its third industry loss estimate
Swiss Re launches Life Guide Scout, a Generative AI underwriting assistant
Swiss Re launches an augmented version of its Life & Health underwriting manual Life Guide. The new version comes equipped with Swiss Re Life Guide Scout
AXA Investment Managers acquires W Capital Partners
AXA Investment Managers has agreed to acquire W Capital Partners, a New York-based private equity firm specializing in GP-led and direct secondaries transactions
Insurtech Lemonade launched of homeowners insurance in France
Insurtech Lemonade announced the launch of Homeowners insurance in France in partnership with BNP Paribas Cardif
Insurtech Element secured €50 mn from Versorgungswerk der Zahnärztekammer
German insurtech startup Element has secured €50 million in funding from Versorgungswerk der Zahnärztekammer Berlin K.d.ö.R. and Alma Mundi
High Court: $10 bn insurance aircraft payouts should be heard in London
London’s High Court has decided that the $10 bn battle between reinsurers and a host of aircraft leasing companies seeking payouts for more than 200 jets stuck
M&A in UK insurance industry rose, in contrast to a EU slowdown
M&A in the UK insurance industry rose in 2023, in contrast to a wider slowdown in deal activity across Europe, the Middle East and Africa
Vienna Insurance Group appointed of Christoph Rath as Managing Board’s deputy member
Austrian Vienna Insurance Group has announced the appointment of Christoph Rath as a deputy member of the Managing Board
UNIQA Insurance Group posted premium growth to EUR 7.2 bn
UNIQA Insurance Group posted premium growth to EUR 7.18 bn (+9.7%) while earnings before taxes exceeded expectations at EUR 426.4 mn
Vienna Insurance Group reported GWP worth EUR 13.8 bn
Vienna Insurance Group reported GWP for 2023 worth EUR 13.8 billion, 10% more y-o-y. Earnings before taxes reached around EUR 773 million
Zurich Insurance reported strong growth across all businesses
Zurich Insurance has reported strong growth across all businesses in the first year of its 2023-2025 financial cycle, with the highest-ever Group business operating profit
PERILS updated insurance loss for Windstorm Ciarán (Emir) in Europe
PERILS has updated its insurance loss estimate for Windstorm Ciarán (also known as Emir) that impacted parts of Europe on 1-2 November 2023
UNIQA Group launches HUB for International Programmes in Poland
The UNIQA Group launches a HUB for International Programmes in Poland, which will be a competence center for 15 countries in Central and Eastern Europe
20% of sports accidents happens to skiers – German Insurers’ Association data
One in five sports accidents happens to skiers, a study performed by the German Insurers’ Association (GDV) shows
Insured losses from the flooding in Germany will remain €1 bn if flood dykes hold
The insured losses from the recent flooding in various regions of Germany are expected to remain under €1 bn if the flood dykes hold, as per Onnen Siems
Partech launches €360 mn venture fund to back software & fintech in Europe
Partech launches its successor €360 mn venture fund to back mission-critical software, data and fintech specialists in Europe
UNIQA is the first insurer in Austria to have ambitious targets to reduce emissions
UNIQA Group informed that is the first insurance company in Austria to have ambitious targets to reduce emissions
VIG Re raises EUR 150 mn additional equity for digital transformation
VIG Re, the reinsurance company of Vienna Insurance Group, announced the increase of its registered capital by the amount of EUR 100 mn in 2023
USAID create a system for insurance against war & political violence risks in Ukraine
The Financial Sector Reform Activity project of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has drafted a memorandum
Courts in Spain allowed a trial on crash SpanAir’s Boeing flight JK5022, killing 154 passengers
Courts in Spain are allowing a trial to move on SpanAir’s Boeing flight JK5022 which crashed on takeoff, killing 154 passengers
Insurtech Prima Assicurazioni looks to attract a new minority partner
Italian insurtech Prima Assicurazioni is seeking indicative offers from potential parties for a minority stake in the company
Vienna Insurance Group acquires an additional 35% in Corvinus’ Hungarian business
Vienna Insurance Group (VIG) has agreed to acquire an additional 35% stake in its Hungarian insurance business from Corvinus
Insurer AXA UK joined forces with insurtech Synectics Solutions
Insurer AXA UK is joining forces with Synectics Solutions, specialises in combating financial crime through innovative technology, including a syndicated fraud database
Global reinsurers providing less NatCat cover for European insurers
Global reinsurers have tightened their terms and conditions to limit their aggregate covers and the lower layers of their natural catastrophe protection
Moody’s estimates insured losses from Windstorm Ciarán $1–$1.6 bn
Moody’s RMS, the risk modeling and solutions company, estimates that insured losses from Windstorm Ciarán, also known as Emir, will likely fall between $1 bn and $1.6 bn
Insurtech Wefox raised $55 mn addition funding from Deutsche Bank and UniCredit
Insurtech Wefox has secured a substantial boost with $55 mn in fresh funding from Deutsche Bank and UniCredit as an extension of the $400 mn
Italian Insurance Market Review: 2023
Higher Lapses Drive Life Outflows, Average Motor Premiums to Grow Life net flows for Italian life insurers in 1H2023 was negative EUR10.7 billion
Web3 security startup Blockaid sequred a $33 mn funding
Blockaid, a web3 security startup co-founded by two former Israeli military cyber intelligence personnel, has come out of stealth with $33 million in funding
As insurers worldwide look for ways to modernize operations and enhance client experiences, blockchain offers a compelling solution to long-standing challenges
Blockchain and cryptocurrency are two terms that have become inseparable, yet they are not the same thing. Blockchain is the technology. Cryptocurrency is the application of that technology
Tokenization, a blockchain-based technology, offers immediate value in these areas. It allows digital representation of asset ownership—whether stocks, bonds, cash, cryptocurrency, data sets
Regulation and taxation of crypto assets in Ukraine, impact on GDP and tax revenues, and the shadowing factor as the main driver of efficiency growth in the industry