- The Swiss Life Group generated fee income of CHF 395 million in the first three months of 2018. That corresponds to 9% growth in local currency compared to the previous year period.
- Group-wide premiums came to CHF 7.0 billion – a rise of 4% in local currency. Insurance reserves for the benefit of the company's policyholders rose by 1% in local currency.
- SwissLife AssetManagers acquired net new assets of CHF 2.4 billion in its third-party asset management in the first quarter of 2018. The company had CHF 63.6 billion in third-party assets under management as of 31 March 2018 (year-end 2017: CHF 61.4 billion).
- Swiss Life achieved direct investment income of CHF 1043 million (Q1 2017: CHF 1037 million). The non-annualised direct investment yield was stable at 0.7%; the non-annualised net investment yield stood at 1.0% (Q1 2017: 0.5%).
- SwissLife had an SST ratio of 170% as of 1 January 2018.
“We have made a very good start to the year”, says Patrick Frost, Group CEO of Swiss Life. “Swiss Life managed to continue to grow its fee business. It is very pleasing that all divisions contributed to this increase. The results of the first quarter of 2018 make us confident that we will achieve or exceed all our goals as set out in the ‘Swiss Life 2018' Group-wide programme.”
Business development in the first quarter of 2018
The Swiss Life Group generated fee income of CHF 395 million in the first three months of 2018 (Q1 2017: CHF 340 million). Growth in local currency of 9% is due to higher contributions from Swiss Life Asset Managers (+11%), from owned IFAs (+8%) and from own and third-party products and services (+4%). Premiums were up 4% in local currency in the first quarter of 2018, to CHF 7.0 billion (Q1 2017: CHF 6.5 billion). Insurance reserves for the benefit of the company's policyholders rose by 1% in local currency.
In its home market of Switzerland, Swiss Life maintained its focus on capital efficiency and achieved premiums of CHF 4.6 billion (Q1 2017: CHF 4.6 billion), with both group life and individual life remaining on a par with the previous year. Fee income was CHF 65 million, 5% higher than in the prior year period (Q1 2017: CHF 62 million). In France, premiums grew in local currency by 17% to CHF 1.4 billion (Q1 2017: CHF 1.1 billion) compared to the same period last year. The driver of this strong growth was life business. Fee income rose by 6% in local currency to CHF 79 million (Q1 2017: CHF 69 million). The main reason for the rise was the growth of unit-linked solutions in life business. SwissLife in Germany generated premiums of CHF375million in the first three months of 2018 (Q1 2017: CHF 345 million). Fee income was up by 16% in local currency to CHF 116 million (Q1 2017: CHF 92 million) due to owned IFAs. The International market unit recorded a premium increase of 12% in local currency to CHF 582 million (Q1 2017: CHF 493 million). Fee income was up 3% in local currency to CHF 60 million (Q1 2017: CHF 55 million) compared to the prior-year level.
Swiss Life Asset Managers acquired CHF 2.4 billion in net new assets for its third-party business in the first three months of 2018. Third-party assets under management increased to CHF 63.6 billion as of 31 March 2018 (year-end 2017: CHF 61.4 billion). In total, Swiss Life Asset Managers achieved fee income of CHF 152 million in the first quarter of 2018 (Q1 2017: CHF 133 million), equivalent to an increase of 11% in local currency.
Investment result and solvency
Swiss Life generated direct investment income of CHF 1043 million in the first three months of 2018 (Q1 2017: CHF 1037 million). The non-annualised direct investment yield remained stable at 0.7% as of 31 March 2018 (Q1 2017: 0.7%). The non-annualised net investment yield was 1.0% at the end of March 2018 (Q1 2017: 0.5%), due in particular to higher valuations of equity derivatives. The Swiss Life Group had an SST ratio of 170% on 1 January 2018 (as filed with FINMA, based on the internal model approved with conditions).
Thomas Buess, Group CFO, will hold a telephone conference in English for financial analysts and investors at 10 a.m.(CET) today. Please dial in ten minutes before the start of the conference. There is also an audio webcast on the web page https://www.swisslife.com.
Dial-in number for Europe |
+41 (0) 58 310 50 00 |
Dial-in number for the UK |
+44 (0) 207 107 06 13 |
Dial-in number for the USA |
+1 (1) 631 570 56 13 |
Key figures as of 31.03.2018
CHF m. |
Q1 2018 |
Q1 2017 |
Change |
Change |
Switzerland |
||||
- Gross written premiums, policy fees and deposits received |
4591 |
4572 |
0% |
0% |
- Fee income |
65 |
62 |
+5% |
+5% |
France |
||||
- Gross written premiums, policy fees and deposits received |
1444 |
1133 |
+27% |
+17% |
- Fee income |
79 |
69 |
+15% |
+6% |
Germany |
||||
- Gross written premiums, policy fees and deposits received |
375 |
345 |
+9% |
0% |
- Fee income |
116 |
92 |
+27% |
+16% |
International |
||||
- Gross written premiums, policy fees and deposits received |
582 |
493 |
+18% |
+12% |
- Fee income |
60 |
55 |
+9% |
+3% |
Asset Managers |
||||
- Fee income |
152 |
133 |
+14% |
+11% |
- Net new assets in third-party business |
2448 |
2663 |
-8% |
-13% |
- Assets under management for third-party business |
63 586 |
61 4053 |
+4% |
+3% |
Total |
||||
- Gross written premiums, policy fees and deposits received1 |
6987 |
6539 |
+7% |
+4% |
- Fee income2 |
395 |
340 |
+16% |
+9% |
1 Gross written premiums, policy fees and deposits received: Total includes Other and intersegment eliminations of CHF -4 m in Q1 2017 and CHF -4 m in Q1 2018.
2 Fee income: Total includes Other and intersegment eliminations of CHF -70 m in Q1 2017 and CHF -77 m in Q1 2018.
3 As of 31.12.2017
Information
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Swiss Life
The Swiss Life Group is one of Europe's leading comprehensive life and pensions and financial solutions providers. In its core markets of Switzerland, France and Germany, Swiss Life offers individuals and corporations comprehensive and individual advice plus a broad range of own and partner products through its sales force and distribution partners such as brokers and banks.
Swiss Life Select, Tecis, Horbach, Proventus and Chase de Vere advisors choose suitable products for customers from the market according to the Best Select approach. Swiss Life Asset Managers offers institutional and private investors access to investment and asset management solutions. Swiss Life provides multinational corporations with employee benefits solutions and high net worth individuals with structured life and pensions products.
Swiss Life Holding Ltd, registered in Zurich, was founded in 1857 as Schweizerische Rentenanstalt. The shares of Swiss Life Holding Ltd are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (SLHN). The subsidiaries Livit, Corpus Sireo and Mayfair Capital are also part of the Swiss Life Group. The Group employs a workforce of around 8000 and approximately 5000 certified financial advisors.
Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking information
This publication contains specific forward-looking statements, e.g. statements including terms like “believe”, “assume”, “expect” or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements, by their nature, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors. These may result in a substantial divergence between the actual results, developments and expectations of Swiss Life and those explicitly or implicitly described in these forward-looking statements. Given these uncertainties, the reader is reminded that these statements are merely projections and should not be overvalued. Neither SwissLife nor its Members of the Board of Directors, executive managers, managers, employees or external advisors nor any other person associated with Swiss Life or with any other relationship to the company makes any express or implied representation or warranty as to the correctness or completeness of the information contained in this publication. SwissLife and the abovementioned persons shall not be liable under any circumstances for any direct or indirect loss resulting from the use of this information. Furthermore, Swiss Life undertakes no obligation to publicly update or change any of these forward-looking statements, or to adjust them to reflect new information, future events, developments or similar.