Swiss Re posted a healthy nine-month profit despite paying out massive storm damage claims. The reinsurer will lose one of its top executives next year.
Swiss Re swung to a $1.1 billion net profit in the first nine months from a year-ago loss, the reinsurer said in a statement on Thursday. The result was hit by $1.6 billion in damage claims including a hurricane in the U.S., wildfires in California, and the collapse of a motorway bridge in Genoa.
The damages are slightly higher than the $1.4 billion flagged two weeks ago by Swiss Re. The reinsurer's property and casualty arm has hit hardest, while its life and health reinsurance arm was more buoyant.
Swiss Re managed an annualized return on equity of 4.7 percent, meaning its investment portfolio also provided a solid contribution to profits. Premiums rose 6.5 percent to $28.4 billion, mainly due to growth of life and health reinsurance.
Ex-Consultant Exits
Separately, Swiss Re said that long-standing operating chief Thomas Wellauer will retire next summer. Wellauer has also worked for drugmaker Novartis and Credit Suisse, where he was linked to a controversial and ultimately ill-fated strategy to expand the Swiss bank's wealth arm.
In 2010, the 63-year-old joined Swiss Re, where he rolled out a holding structure and legally separate business units. Theformer McKinsey consultant's last major project was the construction of Swiss Re's lakeside campus «Mythenquai» and its new headquarters, opened last year.
