Insurance Corporations Statistics – Q1 2020

Publication date: 12 June 2020 

Q1 2020 represents the first quarter in which the data are impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, with the first known case in Ireland confirmed in late-February and the subsequent containment actions from mid-March. A number of balance sheet items already show effects of the reduction in economic activity in Q1. However, it may take time for the impact on other items to become clear.

Key Points

• Total Assets fell from €363 billion at end 2019 to €337 billion in Q1 2020.
• Declines in holdings of investment fund (IF) shares (€19 billion), equities (€8 billion) and debt securities (€4 billion) drove the reduction in asset. They were partially offset by gains in other asset classes. The falls are predominantly due to the market valuation declines, reflecting the initial effects of COVID-19.
• On the liability side, unit-linked life insurance technical reserves (ITRs) made up 99 per cent of the €26 billion decline. The policyholder bears the full investment risk for a unit-linked product, so the decline is likely driven by the fall in assets noted above.

Summary Charts

Chart 1: Total asset holdings stood at €337 billion, returning to Q2 2019 levels

*Other includes derivatives, non-financial assets and remaining assets

Chart 2: Decline in investment fund shares of €19 billion is mainly confined to equity, bond and mixed fund shares

Chart 3: Fall in total liabilities since Q4 2019 is driven by a similar change in the value of unit-linked life ITRs

Related Data Sets

Download the Insurance Corporation Statistics tables in CSV format.