QBE Reports Strong Financial Results for 2024
Australian insurer QBE has announced a significant increase in net profit after tax for 2024, reaching $1.779 billion, compared to $1.355 billion in 2023. The company’s combined operating ratio showed improvement, dropping to 93.1% from 95.2%, bolstered by favorable catastrophe experiences and more stable central estimate reserves.
According to QBE, underwriting profitability surpassed the firm’s expectations in 2024 and continues to exhibit enhanced resilience. The firm’s gross written premiums rose to $22.4 billion, reflecting a 3% increase from the previous year. This growth aligns with predictions and is driven by group-wide renewal rate hikes of 5.5% and targeted new business expansion. However, growth was impacted by portfolio exits in North America and Australia Pacific, coupled with a reduction in Crop premium. Excluding Crop, the gross written premium growth was at 5%, and when excluding exited portfolios, it reached 9%.
In other developments, QBE revealed that the net cost of catastrophe claims in 2024 decreased to $1.048 billion, or 5.9% of net insurance revenue, down from $1.092 billion or 6.6% in 2023. This result was $232 million below QBE’s 2024 catastrophe allowance of $1.280 billion.
The insurer’s adjusted net profit after tax saw an increase to $1.729 billion in 2024 from $1.362 billion in 2023, producing an adjusted return on equity of 18.2%. QBE also reported a robust investment portfolio performance, with total investment income reaching $1.488 billion, equating to a return of 4.9%, up from $1.374 million or 4.7% in 2023. Strong returns were noted across both core fixed income and risk asset portfolios.
QBE Group CEO, Andrew Horton, remarked, “2024 marked the third year since we introduced our new purpose, vision, and strategic priorities, and our financial performance during this period underscores the significant progress we’ve made. We exceeded our plan for the year, continue to show greater resilience, and are optimistic about the future.”
“I am delighted with QBE’s performance in 2024, reflecting our dedication to fostering greater consistency and unlocking value by operating as a global enterprise. We have made substantial progress against our strategic priorities, and it is particularly gratifying to witness the business transition from addressing historical challenges to focusing on future opportunities.”
“For 2025, our six strategic priorities have been refined. This year, we have introduced a new Customer strategic priority aimed at adopting a more customer-centric approach to our product, service, and distribution strategy. In conjunction with our strong relationships with major trading partners, we aim to cultivate deeper relationships with our customers.”
Addressing the impact of the California wildfires, Horton stated, “Our thoughts are with those affected by the devastating wildfires in California last month. Our teams have been diligently working to support our customers and expedite their recovery.”
“We currently anticipate Group net exposure of approximately $200M, accounting for exposure in certain North American and International insurance portfolios, as well as within QBE Re.”
