Zurich Insurance Group Announces Major Acquisition Plans and Profit Growth
Zurich Insurance Group announced a robust business operating profit of $8.9 billion for 2025, marking a notable 14% increase from the previous year. This significant growth underpins the Swiss insurer's strategic initiatives as it positions itself for an impending merger. The company also achieved a net income of $6.8 billion, reflecting a 17% rise, alongside a strong core return on equity of 26.9%.
Currently, Zurich is in the midst of negotiations for a major acquisition of Beazley, valued at approximately £8 billion. Under the recent agreement terms, Beazley shareholders stand to receive up to 1,335 pence per share, comprising 1,310 pence in cash and up to 25 pence in dividends. This successful agreement comes after Zurich's persistent negotiation efforts since June 2025, marking their sixth offer. The proposed price represents a substantial 62.8% premium over Beazley's January 16 closing share price, as reported by Invezz.
Strategic Acquisition Benefits
CEO Mario Greco emphasized the strategic alignment, describing Beazley as "a very complementary business to ours," particularly highlighting its strengths in the Lloyd's market and cyber insurance. The global cyber insurance market was valued at $22.2 billion in 2025, with projections reaching $35.4 billion by 2030, according to GlobalData research. This acquisition is expected to fortify Zurich's position in this lucrative sector.
Pending regulatory approvals from the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority, the Takeover Panel has extended the deadline for a firm offer to March 4. Zurich anticipates these regulatory processes will align smoothly with their acquisition timeline.
The insurer's performance was remarkable across its segments. The Property & Casualty division saw a 22% increase in business operating profit to $5.1 billion, with a favorable combined ratio of 92.6%. The commercial insurance segment experienced a 12% rise in BOP, supported by a relatively quiet natural catastrophe season, while the retail segment’s BOP surged by 50% due to a 16% growth in premiums.
In life insurance, the segment reported a BOP of $2.3 billion, achieving a record contractual service margin of $13.8 billion. Additionally, the Farmers Exchanges recorded an increase in policy counts by over 150,000, marking their first such rise in more than a decade.
Zurich has also proposed a dividend of CHF 30 per share, translating to a 7% increase. Greco expressed satisfaction with the company's performance, stating, "I am extremely proud to see all our businesses contributing to these record results." Furthermore, Zurich plans to launch its first Lloyd's of London syndicate, potentially operational by April, providing access to private capital markets. Greco noted the syndicate model offers an avenue to private capital distinct from traditional reinsurance capital.