h ot o cr ed it s: p h ot ot h
ri n te d o n p ap er f ro m s u st ai n ab ly m an ag ed f o re st s.
* 50%-owned and over, and operating in areas directly related to the insurance business ** Subsidiary: Ecureuil Vie Développement **
Despite the many uncertainties, for a number of years now the global economy has been buoyed by a strong underlying trend that played an important role in softening the impact of the 2008-2009 recession. I am referring to the vibrant growth in emerging markets. Lest we forget, the remarkable growth of the Chinese economy throughout the last decade was accompanied by very fine economic performances in many other countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Their ascension, which has enabled large swathes of the world’s population to raise their purchasing power by acquiring the necessary skills to enter the job market (and this is just the beginning), represents an opportunity as well as a challenge for developed countries. The most competitive mature economies – such as Germany, several of the Nordic countries and our more distant peers Australia and Canada – are successfully riding the global tide of growth through their exports. However, the less competitive countries need to urgently address their shortcomings, so as not to miss out on the gains that this extraordinary trend promises to bring. France has been making decisions in the right direction, and that needs to continue.
Still several months away from the introduction of the new Solvency II regulatory regime, which will apply to insurance companies as of 1 January 2013, CNP Assurances is already deep in preparation. However, while Solvency II will drive improvements in assessing risks and determining the capital required to cover them, questions can legitimately be raised about the wisdom of discouraging insurers from investing in equities at a time when our economy needs these investments the most.
• Board of Directors comprising 8 members (4 nominated by CNP Assurances) elected for six-year terms.
Average technical reserves, excluding deferred participation, climbed 8.2% to €280 billion, lifted by structurally positive net new money.
Percentage under permanent contracts (CNP Assurances and consolidated international subsidiaries): 97.7%
CNP Assurances has developed a wide range of products to help policyholders to deal with life’s everyday risks, including long-term care insurance, death insurance, funeral insurance, personal accident insurance and health insurance. These products are sold in France by La Banque Postale Prévoyance – a joint subsidiary of CNP Assurances and La Banque Postale –, the Caisses d’Epargne networks, CNP Trésor insurance advisors and mutual insurance partners, and in international markets by CNP Assurances’s subsidiaries.
We have set ambitious goals in this market, which is expected to experience double-digit growth in the next five years. To keep pace with this growth, the offer is being regularly expanded with the development of products for all client categories. In 2010, we strengthened our long-standing partnership with the leading civil service mutual insurers within MFP Services, by acquiring a majority stake in the capital of MFPrévoyance SA.
“Insurassistance” was invented by CNP Assurances. To support this business, we created two assistance subsidiaries, Filassistance International and Filassistance Services, along with a service brand – CNP Services à la Personne – and in 2002, we acquired Âge d’Or Services, France’s leading private provider of local personal assistance services.
The new Risks and Solvency department set up in early 2010 is responsible for i) evaluating capital adequacy and maintaining an overall vision of our risk profile; ii) developing and ensuring proper governance of the internal capital adequacy evaluation model; and iii) supervising the quantitative risk management process.
The work carried out in 2010 mainly consisted of defining risk tolerance, and also launching the risk management function and defining its interaction with the operating departments, including in the subsidiaries. In practice, this meant deploying qualitative risk management procedures covering the product development process, analysing the main operational and emerging risks, and launching the necessary work to set up a system for the quantitative management of financial and technical risks.
The Risks and Compliance department is responsible for assessing and overseeing the management of operational risks and the risks that may arise due to insurance products not fully complying with the applicable regulations, or in the event of failure to comply with ethical rules, or as a result of money-laundering transactions.
The Information Systems department successfully carried out two annual exercises to test its external back-up systems, as part of the disaster recovery plan that is designed to ensure that data processing operations continue in the event of a major incident at the Beaucouzé centre on the outskirts of Angers.
When interest rates are low, there is always a risk that when they do start to rise, the increase will be too steep. In this case, interest rates on portfolios of fixed rate assets may lag behind the higher market rates, leading to capital losses for the insurers. We pay close attention to this risk, which is taken into account in managing both assets and liabilities. In particular, our traditional savings contracts with a unit-linked formula include clauses that limit the effect on insurance and financial liabilities of an unfavourable change in interest rates.
Market value of SRI portfolios at 31 December (in € millions)
Contract administration, policyholder and beneficiary services, distribution network assistance and customer advice and communications are the responsibility of our dedicated customer service centres in Arcueil and Angers.
Online sign-up for Direct Ecureuil in 2011 October 2010 saw the deployment of the new services platform for the Caisses d’Epargne’ life insurance customers. The platform’s broad functionality gives policyholders interactive access to the network’s entire life insurance product range. They can read their contract, check transaction details, view and download statements and account information, make recurring single payments, transfer capital between funds, or adjust the amounts of their regular or recurring single premiums. Online sign-up will be possible in 2011 for the products that are well suited to the Internet environment, such as Ecureuil Solutions Obsèques.
On 10 June 2010, we renewed until 31 December 2017 our partnership agreement with Mutuelle Nationale Territoriale (MNT) that was originally scheduled to expire at the end of 2012.
CNP Assurances share split Before trading began on 6 July 2010, CNP Assurances carried out a four-for-one share split. By making the shares more affordable, this operation should help to increase the number of CNP Assurances shareholders and help keep ownership of the free float evenly balanced between private and institutional investors.
A COMMITMENT TO COMMUNITY OUTREACH As part of its ongoing effort to alleviate human suffering, the CNP Assurances Foundation pursued initiatives launched in 2009 to improve first aid treatment for heart attack victims.
The partnership with RMC-BFM Association was renewed this year and supported by a new campaign to raise awareness of the program. Produced with the backing of the CNP Assurances Foundation, a short TV programme called 4 minutes showing how to respond in the event of a heart attack was broadcast last summer on France’s national television channels. The operation also included radio ads, a dedicated website – www.4minutes.fr – and a poster campaign.
The Company is pursuing other similar initiatives. In addition to routinely printing all policyholder correspondence on both sides of each sheet of paper, it is also developing paperless e-mail solutions for CNP Trésor. In 2010, some 20,000 e-mail addresses of CNP Trésor customers were compiled in anticipation of an initial electronic mailing campaign in 2011.
• New business/Goodwill Multiple of the value of new business. The multiple depends on the growth outlook.
• Montpellier 68, allée de Mycènes CS 29501 34961 Montpellier Cedex 2