PVI Holdings' headquarters in Phạm Văn Bạch Street, Hà Nội. Photo courtesy of the company

By Ly Ly Cao

HÀ NỘI — PVI Holdings saw another year of positive growth in 2022, with the reinsurance segment taking the lead in the domestic market for the first time.

Last year, the company posted a total revenue of VNĐ14 trillion (US$587.7 million), an increase of 30 per cent year-on-year, and a profit before tax of more than VNĐ1.1 trillion.

As a result, its profit after tax also rose slightly to more than VNĐ877.1 billion, extending its growth streak for a fifth year.

The company’s total assets for the year reached VNĐ26 trillion.

Despite the turbulent year for the economy and the insurance industry in particular, PVI maintained its leading position in terms of revenue, profit, and market share in both non-life insurance and reinsurance segments, PVI said at the PVI Analyst Meeting 2023, titled Resilient Leaders, on February 27 afternoon.

Of which, the non-life insurance business was still the largest contributor to PVI's total revenue, with revenue from insurance premiums in 2022 surpassing VNĐ10 trillion, up 21 per cent over the previous year, and contributing 70 per cent to the total revenue of the PVI system.

At the end of the last financial year, PVI's non-life insurance sector accounted for 14.8 per cent of the domestic market share thanks to the continued consolidation of corporate governance in the direction of transparency and sustainable development, said the company.

The reinsurance business witnessed extraordinary growth last year, with revenue from reinsurance premiums soaring 50 per cent compared to the same period in 2021 to VNĐ2.4 trillion, accounting for 17 per cent of its total revenue. Its subsidiary PVI Re led the domestic reinsurance market for the first time last year.

With its strong financial capacity and high liquidity, the company has a large amount of cash and short-term deposits of over VNĐ7 trillion and a portfolio of highly liquid securities ready to pay obligations to customers and partners.

Thanks to the impressive developments last year, PVI Insurance Corporation's credit rating has recently been upgraded from B++ to A- by the world's largest credit rating agency specialising in the insurance industry A.M Best. This is the highest rating in the current Vietnamese market for non-life insurers.

The update will be a new tool for PVI to promote market development beyond the territory of Việt Nam, said Jens Holger Wohlthat, chairman of the board of directors of PVI Holdings.

The company also said that last year, it paid the 2021's cash dividend at a rate of up to 33 per cent. And the 2022's payment rate is expected at 30 per cent. 

PVI has shifted the investment portfolio to fixed-income assets while reducing the proportion of investment in stocks in 2022. Specifically, profit from financial activities contributed more than 63 per cent to total profit before tax, maintaining a positive growth rate for the past five years.

The results showed the stable financial performance of the system, especially in a year in which the macroeconomy and stock market witnessed many unfavourable developments. And it will maintain a flexible asset allocation approach to achieve dual goals, resulting in high investment efficiency and better risk management.

"We have implemented a very careful investment strategy, including measures on risk management to avoid the risk of debt relief from partners in both the insurance and investment sectors amid the financial market's challenges in 2022," the chairman of PVI Holdings told partners and investors.

Transfer to HoSE

The chairman also revealed the company's intention to transfer shares from the Hà Nội Stock Exchange (HNX) to the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) in the near future, as well as its long-term investment and operations strategies.

"We are preparing to transfer from HNX to trade on HoSE," said Wohlthat.

"We will continue to increase earning per share (EPS) and dividend per share (DPS) ratios, and stock valuation in a stable and consistent manner. In addition to ensuring efficient operations and safe investment activities, we pay high dividends in cash and may consider paying in shares when conditions are appropriate, and we pledge to distribute at least 90 per cent of profits after tax to shareholders."

On the stock market, PVI's shares were traded at VNĐ49,900 a share on Tuesday morning, a gain of 0.2 per cent over the same period last year. It ended the February 28 session at VNĐ49,800. — VNS