Zurich, 9 November 2016

Swiss Life continues to focus on profitability - growth in fee income

  • In the first nine months of 2016, the Swiss Life Group posted fee income of CHF 974 million, an increase of 2% in local currency compared to the same period last year.
  • Group-wide premiums stood at CHF 13.4 billion, down by 9% in local currency. At the same time, insurance reserves to the benefit of the company's policyholders rose by 2% in local currency.
  • Swiss Life Asset Managers achieved net new assets of CHF 5.9 billion in its third-party asset management in the first three quarters of 2016 with assets under management increasing to CHF 46.2 billion as at 30 September 2016 (year-end 2015: CHF 38.8 billion).
  • Direct investment income of CHF 3.3 billion was at the previous year's level. Non-annualised direct investment yield was 2.2%, while the corresponding net investment yield was 2.3%. Swiss Life expects a net investment yield of around 3% for the 2016 financial year.

"Swiss Life was able to continue its positive trend in the third quarter," says Patrick Frost, CEO of the Swiss Life Group. "We saw further growth in our fee business, an area of strategic importance for us, and managed to keep direct investment income at the previous year's level despite persistently tough market conditions. We are still on track to achieving our 2016 financial targets."

Business development in the first three quarters

The Swiss Life Group generated premiums of CHF 13.4 billion in the first nine months of 2016 (Q3 2015: CHF 14.6 billion). In local currency this corresponds to a decline of 9%. Insurance reserves to the benefit of the company's policyholders rose by 2% in local currency as at 30 September 2016. Fee income was up 2% in local currency in the first three quarters of the year, to CHF 974 million (Q3 2015: CHF 929 million). Swiss Life Asset Managers and the owned IFA channels were the main contributors to this positive development. Patrick Frost: "It was also encouraging to see progress in our 'Swiss Life 2018' Group-wide programme: we have already implemented half of our cost savings initiatives. Moreover, our share of non-traditional products in our new business mix was 90%."

In its home market of Switzerland, Swiss Life achieved premiums of CHF 8.2 billion (Q3 2015: CHF 8.7 billion), corresponding to a 6% decrease. During the same period, fee income rose by 23% to CHF 177 million, mainly driven by the growth of Swiss Life Select and the real estate brokerage business (Q3 2015: CHF 144 million). In France, premiums fell by 6% in local currency to CHF 3.3 billion (Q3 2015: CHF 3.4 billion) compared to the same period last year. Fee income was down 7% in local currency over the previous year to CHF 175 million due to lower banking fees (Q3 2015: CHF 183 million). Swiss Life in Germany generated premiums of CHF 905 million in the first nine months of 2016 (Q3 2015: CHF 930 million) - equivalent to a decrease of 5% in local currency. The 2% decline in fee income in local currency to CHF 259 million (Q3 2015: CHF 258 million) is due to the insurance business; fee income in the owned IFA channels rose simultaneously by 5% in local currency. The International market unit recorded a premium decline of 40% in local currency to CHF 1.0 billion (Q3 2015: CHF 1.6 billion). Fee income was down 5% over the previous year in local currency at CHF 161 million (Q3 2015: CHF 164 million); adjusted for currency effects of pound sterling, this corresponds to a decline of 1%.

Swiss Life Asset Managers posted net new assets of CHF 5.9 billion in its third-party asset management in the first three quarters of 2016. As a result, assets under management for third-party clients increased to CHF 46.2 billion as at 30 September 2016 (year-end 2015: CHF 38.8 billion). Swiss Life Asset Managers achieved fee income of CHF 422 million in the first nine months of 2016 (Q3 2015: CHF 388 million), corresponding to 8% growth in local currency over the previous year.

Investment returns and solvency

Swiss Life generated direct investment income of CHF 3266 million in the first nine months of 2016, and thus reached the previous year's level (Q3 2015: CHF 3253 million). Non-annualised direct investment yield was 2.2% as at 30 September 2016 (Q3 2015: 2.3%); the non-annualised net investment yield in the first nine months of the year stood at 2.3% (Q3 2015: 2.6%). Swiss Life expects a net investment yield of around 3% for the financial year. The SST ratio (based on the internal model approved with conditions) was above 140% as at 30 September 2016.

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.

Dial-in number for Europe +41 (0) 58 310 50 00

Dial-in number for the UK +44 (0) 203 059 58 62

Dial-in number for the USA +1 (1) 631 570 56 13

Key figures as at 30.09.2016

CHF m.
IFRS basis, unaudited

YTD 2016

YTD 2015

Change
(CHF)

Change
(in local currency)

Switzerland

  • GWP incl. PHD

8 189

8 687

-6 %

-6 %

  • Fee and commission income

177

144

+23 %

+23 %

France

  • GWP incl. PHD

3 264

3 362

-3 %

-6 %

  • Fee and commission income

175

183

-4 %

-7 %

Germany

  • GWP incl. PHD

905

930

-3 %

-5 %

  • Fee and commission income

259

258

+0 %

-2 %

International

  • GWP incl. PHD

1 014

1 644

-38 %

-40 %

  • Fee and commission income

161

164

-2 %

-5 %

Asset Managers

  • Fee income

422

388

+9 %

+8 %

  • NNA TPAM

5 919

5 135

+15 %

+14 %

  • AuM TPAM

46 213

38 8162

+19 %

+19 %

Total1

  • GWP incl. PHD

13 355

14 580

-8 %

-9 %

  • Fee and commission income

974

929

+5 %

+2 %

1GWP incl. PHP: Total includes Other and intersegment eliminations of CHF -43 m in Q3 2015 and CHF -17 m in Q3 2016; Fee and commission income: Total includes Other and intersegment eliminations of CHF -209 m in Q3 2015 and CHF -220 m in Q3 2016

2 As at 31.12.2015

Information

Media Relations

Phone +41 43 284 77 77

media.relations@swisslife.ch

Investor Relations

Phone +41 43 284 52 76

investor.relations@swisslife.ch

www.swisslife.com

Follow us on Twitter

@swisslife_group

Further information

All our media releases can be found at swisslife.com/mediareleases

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, Deutsche 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 two subsidiaries Livit and Corpus Sireo are also part of the Swiss Life Group. The Group employs a workforce of around 7600 and approximately 4600 certified financial advisors.

A journey through Swiss Life Group

What matters in life

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.


Media release (PDF)



Provider
 Channel
 Contact
Tensid EQS Ltd., Switzerland
www.tensid.ch


 newsbox.ch
www.newsbox.ch


 Provider/Channel related enquiries
marco@tensid.ch
+41 41 763 00 50