Ethniki Insurance managed to maintain its high profitability for 2020, with earnings before taxes for the 12 months of 2020 amounting to €85.7 million (12 months 2019: €81.7 million), while it also quickly and effectively adapted to the new conditions and challenges created by the Covid-19 pandemic on a global level. Net profits after taxes came to €66.7 million, compared to €57.2 million in 2019, up by 16.6%.
Consolidated earnings before taxes for the Ethniki Insurance Group for 2020 totalled €87.9 million, compared to €82.3 million in 2019, while net profits after taxes came to €68.4 million and €57.9 million, respectively.
The company’s high profitability is mainly attributed to the positive technical results in the fire, motor and traditional life insurance divisions. The total written premiums also moved upward, with the only exception being the single premium product. Total written premiums, without the turnover of this product, came to €557.1 million, for an increase of 6.1% against the 12 months of 2019. When including turnover for the single premium product, total written premiums amounted to €669.0 million for the 12 months of 2020, compared to €740.6 million for the 12 months of 2019.
Specifically, written premiums for life insurance, except the single premium product turnover, came to €381.8 million for the 12 months of 2020, compared to €357.0 million for the 12 months of 2019, up 6.9%. This reflects the ability of all of the company’s networks, without exception, to grow and effectively respond to a climate with such pronounced uncertainty. Including turnover of this product, which plays a small role in the company’s profitability, written premiums for the life division came to €493.8 million for the 12 months of 2020, compared to €572.6 million for the 12 months in 2019 (including investment products), recording a drop of 13.8%.
As regards non-life insurance sectors, gross written premiums amounted to €175.2 million in the 12 months of 2020, compared to €168.0 million for the 12 months of 2019, for a 4.3% increase mainly originating from the fire sector and from general civil liability.
Investment portfolio valuation losses, which had been recorded in the first quarter of 2020 as a result of instability in capital markets – particularly in the Southern European countries, were completely reversed in the second half of the year, while the drop in spreads combined with the profitability for the 12 months of 2020 helped raise equity by €161.6 million and amounted to €1,223.7 million on 31/12/2020. (31/12/2019: €1,062.1 million).
Operating costs for 2020 were down from the same period in 2019 by 9.9% and came to €88.7 million, compared to €98.5 million for the 12 months of 2019. The decrease is largely due to savings on staff payroll costs resulting from the voluntary redundancy of 117 employees in the first quarter of 2019, with an annual gain of €8 million; the reduction in general and administrative costs (G&As); non-recurring extraordinary expenses posted in 2019; and the reduction in expenditures for promotion, advertising, participation in conferences and travel due to the pandemic.
