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Risk report

Principles for the handling of opportunities and risks

Our objective is to consolidate and further extend our position as one of the world’s leading globally operating reinsurance groups of above-average profitability. With a view to accomplishing this aim we enter into a broad variety of risks which, on the one hand, open up opportunities for profit but, on the other hand, can also have adverse implications for our company. Our goal is to make optimal use of opportunities while at the same time adequately controlling and managing the risks associated with our commercial activities. Through our global orientation and our operations in all lines of reinsurance we achieve extensive risk equalisation. In particular, diversification between our non-life and life and health reinsurance business groups enables us to effectively deploy our capital. As a reinsurance specialist, we also transact primary insurance business in selected niche markets on a complementary basis to our traditional reinsurance activities. Of material significance to all segments are the underwriting results and the investment of the premium payments. The parameters and decisions of the Executive Board with respect to the risk appetite of Hannover Re are fundamental to the acceptance of risks. The risk strategy derived from the corporate strategy constitutes the basis for our handling of opportunities and risks. We act on opportunities only by weighing up the associated risks. The risk strategy and the guidelines derived from it, such as the Framework Guideline on Risk Management and the central system of limits and thresholds, are subject to regular review. In this way, we ensure that our assumptions and hence also our risk management system are kept up-to-date. Operationalisation of our corporate strategy takes place on multiple levels and ultimately leads into guidelines, including for example the underwriting guidelines used by our treaty and regional departments.

Opportunities for Hannover Re are to be anticipated inter alia as a consequence of the impending adoption of risk-based solvency systems, such as Solvency II in Europe. Irrespective of the date of implementation of Solvency II on the European level, risk-based national regulations are already in force and others will likely follow. We have long practised a risk-based and value-based management approach of the type which regulators will call for under Solvency II and we began to make our preparations for the requirements of Solvency II at an early stage. We see Solvency II as an opportunity for the convergence of international regulatory and internal corporate approaches and consider ourselves well-equipped to provide the markets with tailored products. Stronger demand for reinsurance covers can also be expected as a consequence of content-based adjustments to the natural catastrophe simulation models used by our company as well as the vigorous growth recorded in a number of markets. For Hannover Re itself, the minimum capital requirements imposed under Solvency II are unlikely to present an obstacle, since our internal capitalisation targets (confidence level of 99.97%) go well beyond the regulatory requirements (confidence level of 99.5%). Business ideas and opportunities are systematically analysed by our Business Opportunity Management unit with the aim of generating new business and thereby enabling Hannover Re to enjoy continued sustainable growth going forward. This is complemented by initiatives such as our “future radar”, a systematic analysis of relevant factors that will drive future success. All activities and decisions are guided not only by profit targets but also increasingly by sustainability considerations. We have defined what we consider to be the most important issues in the context of our sustainability strategy.

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