Helvetia kann auf ein erfreuliches Geschäftsjahr 2018 zurückblicken. Sehr zufrieden sind wir mit dem Wachstum des Geschäftsvolumens sowie der unverändert guten Qualität des Portfolios. Trotz der schwierigen Situation an den Kapitalmärkten erzielten wir ein solides Ergebnis. Zudem sind wir bei der Umsetzung unserer Strategie helvetia 20.20 erfolgreich unterwegs. Wir erzielten weitere Fortschritte rund um das Ziel, unseren Kunden möglichst einfache Dienstleistungen anzubieten und so unser Markenversprechen «einfach. klar. helvetia» einzulösen.
Nach der erfolgreichen Integration der im Jahre 2014 getätigten Akquisitionen von Nationale Suisse und Basler Österreich rapportieren wir ab dem Geschäftsjahr 2018 nicht mehr ein um Akquisitions- effekte bereinigtes «Ergebnis aus Geschäftstätigkeit», sondern nunmehr das Resultat gemäss IFRS. Hintergrund ist, dass der Jahresabschluss mit Ausnahme von fortlaufenden Abschreibungen von Bonds auf Par keine Akquisitionseffekte mehr enthält. Zur besseren Einschätzung der operativen Entwicklung vergleichen wir das aktuelle IFRS-Jahresergebnis jedoch mit dem um sämtliche Akquisitionseffekte bereinigten Ergebnis aus Geschäftstätigkeit von 2017.
Im Lebengeschäft stärkt Helvetia das Kerngeschäft unter anderem mit den neu lancierten eigenen Fonds. Diese zeichnen sich durch eine transparente Kostenstruktur und niedrige Verwaltungsgebühren aus. Mit den Fonds können Privatkunden von der 160-jährigen Anlagekompetenz von Helvetia profitieren.
Wie Helvetia gezielt Innovationen nutzt, zeigt der Einsatz von INZMO im B2B2C-Kanal. INZMO ist ein estnisches InsurTech-Unternehmen, an dem der Helvetia Venture Fund beteiligt ist. Via INZMO können Fachhändler schnell und einfach passende Versicherungsdeckungen zu ihren Produkten anbieten.
In 2019, Helvetia generated IFRS net income after tax of CHF 538.1 million, which was well above the 2018 result of CHF 431.0 million. The business volume amounted to CHF 9,454.1 million (2018: CHF 9,073.3 million). In original currency, this was an increase of 5.6 %. This growth was especially driven by the non-life business (+8.3 % in original currency) in Europe and by strategic initiatives in Specialty Markets. In the life insurance business, Helvetia also posted a higher business volume compared to the previous year (+3.0 % in original currency). Contributions were primarily made here by increases for capital-efficient investment-linked insurance products in individual life in Switzerland, Germany and Italy.
Helvetia took a further important step with the launch of offers in the area of asset management. Helvetia Asset Management AG was founded for this purpose and will in future make Helvetia’s investment expertise in the real estate sector available to third parties. This will see Helvetia broaden its product offering and diversify its income sources in the form of fee income.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Helvetia once again took a major step forward last year. We are thus keeping our promise to create added value for our customers, employees and also for you as shareholders. This has been made possible by our employees thanks to their expertise in the core business and their willingness to try new things.
We would like to thank you most warmly for the trust that you place in us.
The shareholders approve all the proposals submitted by the Board of Directors at the ordinary Shareholders ’ Meeting of Helvetia Holding, including a share split at a ratio of five for one. The first trading day after the split is 13 May 2019.
Helvetia reports an outstanding SST ratio of 222% for the 2018 financial year. The Swiss Solvency Test (SST) is based for the first time on the new standard models of the financial supervisory authority. Helvetia also provides additional information on its dividend potential. The Group increases this to CHF 0.6 billion.
In 2018, Helvetia Insurance generates a solid result in the area of occupational pension plans in Switzerland. Due to the unrealistic parameters in the second pillar, Helvetia makes changes to the structure of the pension solution to enable it to continue offering a comprehensive range of products.
25.6.2019 Helvetia Venture Fund invests in German start­up Chargery, a full­service e­mobility provider
The Helvetia Venture Fund invests in Chargery. The German start-up is a full-service e-mobility provider and employs a broad range of services to reduce the outage times of electric fleets in urban areas.
29.8.2019 Helvetia increases earnings and business volume and successfully implements its helvetia 20.20 strategy
Helvetia can report a successful business performance in the first half of 2019: earnings and business volume increase, while the combined ratio in the non-life business and the new business margin for the life business develop in line with the strategy.
26.7.2019 Helvetia Venture Fund invests in Mobile Garantie – a specialist in innovative war­ ranty cover
Helvetia Venture Fund invests in Mobile Garantie Deutschland GmbH. The company specialises in innovative warranty and repair cover for the vehicle and affinity sector. Mobile Garantie’s sales are heavily dependent on the B2B channel and the company already cooperates with Helvetia Insurance.
Adaptation of management structure and new CEO Switzerland from 1 May 2020
S&P improves Helvetia’s ratings outlook from “stable” to “posi­ tive”. The ratings of the Helvetia Group is confirmed with “A”.
S&P recognises, among other things, Helvetia‘s focus on implementing the cornerstones of its business strategy, while maintaining sustainable profitability as well as its very strong capitalisation. The improved risk profile also contributed to the improved outlook.
Shareholder base. Helvetia is aware of the responsibility that it has towards its investors and focuses its shareholder policy on longterm investor relationships. We act reliably, sustainably and reputably and always communicate in an open, understandable and timely manner. To guarantee the liquidity of the shares on the capital market, we target a free float in excess of 60 %. As core shareholder, Patria Genossenschaft (34.1 %) provides stability and ensures that Helvetia has strategic room for manoeuvre. The free float stands at 65. 9%. As at 31 December 2019, Helvetia had 17,021 shareholders. At the end of the year, the employees held 1.42 % of the registered share capital, around 0.17 % of which was held by members of the Board of Directors and Executive Management of Helvetia.
Subordinated bond CHF 225 Mio. 4.00 % p.a. 30 Jahre 2014
Subordinated bond EUR 500 Mio. 3.375 % p.a. 30.5 Jahre 2017
Group profit for the period per share in CHF 10.5 8.4
Dividend per share2 5.00 4.80 1 Based on year-end price 2 Proposal to the Shareholder’s Meeting 1 Proposal to the Shareholders’ Meeting 2 Based on underlying earnings 3 Based on the IFRS result
Helvetia Group Susanne Tengler P. O. Box, CH-9001 St. Gallen www.helvetia.com investor.relations@helvetia.ch
This document may contain projections or other forward-looking statements related to Helvetia Group which by their very nature, involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks exist that predictions, forecasts, projections and other outcomes described or implied in forward -looking statements will not be achieved. We caution you that a number of important factors could cause results to differ materially from the plans, objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions expressed in such forward-looking statements. These factors include (1) changes in general economic conditions, in particular in the markets in which we operate; (2) the performance of financial markets; (3) changes in interest rates; (4) changes in currency exchange rates; (5) changes in laws and regulations, including accounting policies or practices; (6) risks associated with implementing our business strategies; (7) the frequency, magnitude and general development of insured claim events; (8) the mortality and morbidity experience; (9) policy renewal and lapse rates. We caution you that the foregoing list of important factors is not exclusive; when evaluating forward-looking statements, you should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties. All forward-looking statements are based on information available to Helvetia Group on the date of its posting and Helvetia Group assumes no obligation to update such statements unless otherwise required by applicable law.