Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance's Nine-Month Net Profit Rises 4.6% to KRW 1.8655 Trillion

'Core business' insurance profit rises 9.8% to KRW 1.5103 trillion
Total CSM reaches KRW 14.835 trillion at end of third quarter, up 4.7%
"Canopius acquisition to diversify business from domestic B2C to global B2B"

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance said on November 12 that its cumulative net profit attributable to controlling shareholders for the first three quarters rose 4.6% year on year to KRW 1.8655 trillion.

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance headquarters in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance

Cumulative consolidated profit before tax totaled KRW 2.503 trillion.

Cumulative insurance profit came to KRW 1.5103 trillion, up 9.8% year on year. Investment profit grew 6.7% to KRW 1.0434 trillion year on year, despite a slowdown in third-quarter performance amid increased market volatility.

In long-term insurance, the company focused on strengthening growth across the value chain. Cumulative new-business contractual service margin (CSM) for the first three quarters totaled KRW 1.84 trillion, down 15.9% year on year. Total CSM reached KRW 14.835 trillion, up KRW 667.4 billion, or 4.7%, from the end of last year.

The company managed insurance profit by improving persistency rates for protection-type policies and controlling the risk loss ratio. Persistency rates for protection-type policies at the 25th and 37th months improved by 4.8 and 7.4 percentage points, respectively, year on year. The risk loss ratio also stood at 97.9% in the third quarter, remaining similar to the same period last year.

In auto insurance, the company prioritized improving the quality of its policy portfolio over expanding premium volume, in line with its focus on profitability. As a result, cumulative insurance revenue for the first three quarters edged down year on year to KRW 4.1351 trillion.

Insurance profit for the third quarter was KRW 19.1 billion, an improvement from a loss of KRW 64.8 billion in the same period last year. Despite an increase in the average claim amount per case due to rising claims costs, the company boosted insurance profit by lowering the accident rate through improvements in policy characteristics and increasing earned premiums per coverage. As a result, cumulative insurance profit for the first three quarters remained in positive territory at KRW 39.2 billion.

In general insurance, cumulative insurance revenue for the first three quarters rose 11.9% year on year to KRW 1.4493 trillion, driven by growth in both domestic and overseas businesses.

Although large claims from fire and heavy rain damage in the third quarter temporarily increased volatility, the cumulative loss ratio fell 1.2 percentage points year on year to 62.4%. Insurance profit consequently rose 35.9% year on year to KRW 212.9 billion.

In asset management, investment income grew steadily as the company continued investing in high-yielding assets, despite losses on valuation amid increased stock market volatility in the third quarter.

The cumulative investment yield for the first three quarters was 3.33%, while investment income based on managed assets rose 3.9% year on year to KRW 2.404 trillion.

Meanwhile, Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance said it decided at a board meeting on November 9 to acquire the remaining 60% stake in British insurer Canopius together with global private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and the Korea Investment Corporation.

Assuming the transaction closes at the end of March 2027, the total purchase price will be approximately $2.47 billion (about KRW 3.3 trillion). Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance will invest approximately $1.67 billion (about KRW 2.23 trillion) of that amount, increasing its stake to 80.6%.

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance has made strategic investments in Canopius since 2019, growing alongside the company through reinsurance collaboration and the sharing of business infrastructure. The insurer described the acquisition as "an important milestone in the corporate value-up plan announced early last year."

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance said, "The acquisition is expected to mark a strategic turning point, enabling us to secure a stable source of earnings through high-quality assets in the Lloyd's market in the United Kingdom and to internalize globally competitive expertise and business infrastructure, thereby diversifying our business structure from one centered on domestic B2C (business-to-consumer) operations to global B2B (business-to-business) operations." It added, "The fundamental direction of our capital policy, including our existing shareholder return plan, remains unchanged."

As of the end of September, Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance's K-ICS (Korean Insurance Capital Standard) ratio stood at 280.8%, up 17.9 percentage points from 262.9% at the end of last year, influenced by macroeconomic indicators such as interest rates, stock prices, and exchange rates. Its core capital ratio rose 39.6 percentage points to 210.3% from 170.7% at the end of last year.

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance set targets of maintaining a K-ICS ratio of at least 220% over the medium to long term, keeping return on equity (ROE) at 11-13%, and achieving a 50% shareholder return ratio by 2028.

Koo Youngmin, chief financial officer (CFO) and head of management support at Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, said, "Even in a business environment where profitability pressures persist across the industry, we are implementing a strategy focused on profitability through differentiated risk management capabilities and capital response capabilities, creating a structural improvement in the competitiveness of our core business." He added, "We will continue to strengthen our stable earnings capacity and profit base, and deliver long-term shareholder value through consistent execution of our strategy and transparent communication."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.