Global reinsurer Munich Re’s net result came in above target at €6.121 billion for the 2025 financial year, with a contribution of €5.204 billion from the reinsurance business following a strong performance in property and casualty (P&C) and life and health (L&H) during the year.
2025 was the fifth consecutive year in which Munich Re’s annual profit outperformed the respective guidance, and the more than €6.1 billion is an improvement on 2024’s €5.69 billion, while the Q4’25 net result fell to €945 million from €1.068 billion in Q4’24.
Group-wide, insurance revenue from insurance contracts issued was stable at €60.412 billion in 2025, with Munich Re highlighting growth in the L&H reinsurance segment and at ERGO, its primary insurance arm, which largely offset the deliberate discontinuation of business in P&C reinsurance, and negative currency effects.
Munich Re’s return on equity increased to 18.3% in 2025 compared with 18.2% in 2024, while earnings per share totalled €47.15, an increase on the prior year’s €42.93.
For 2025, the total technical result increased by 13% to €9.8 billion, as the investment result increased by 5% year-on-year to €7.514 billion.
Within reinsurance, the net result increased from €4.88 billion in 2024 to €5.204 billion in 2025, so above the target of €5.1 billion. For Q4’25, the net result decreased to €824 million from €887 million a year earlier.
Insurance revenue from insurance contracts issued fell to €38.731 billion in 2025, compared with €40.034 billion in 2024. Munich Re attributes the decline to negative currency effects, primarily associated with the US dollar, and the deliberate discontinuation of business that no longer met its return requirements, as well as changes in accounting practices that did not affect the net result.
Munich Re’s P&C reinsurance segment net result increased to €3.308 billion in 2025 from €3.153 billion in 2024, as insurance revenue from insurance contracts issued fell to €17.926 billion, compared with €19.487 billion a year earlier. The segment’s combined ratio strengthened to 73.5% from 77.3%, with a normalised combined ratio of 80.1%.
Within P&C reinsurance, major-loss expenditure, after retrocession and before taxes, fell from €2.807 billion in 2024 to €1.627 billion in 2025, and increased to €558 million from €377 million for the quarter. Man-made losses totalled €740 million, and natural catastrophe losses totalled €887 million, both down year-on-year. The LA wildfires in January, at a cost of €800 million, were the most expensive single claims event of the year for the reinsurer.
The total technical result for the L&H reinsurance business came down to €1.715 billion in 2025 from €1.857 billion, but was above the target of €1.7 billion. The segment’s net result dropped to €1.334 billion from €1.545 billion, while insurance revenue from insurance contracts issued increased to €12.179 billion.
The Global Specialty Insurance segment generated a net result of €562 million in 2025, a big increase on the prior year’s €182 million, as insurance revenue from insurance contracts issued rose to €8.625 billion, with an improved combined ratio of 85.9% driven by the decline in major-loss costs.
Alongside its results for the 2025 financial year, the reinsurer has provided an update on its experience at the January 1st, 2026, reinsurance renewals, revealing a 7.8% decrease in the volume of business written to €13.7 billion.
“Munich Re deliberately opted to not renew or write business that did not meet expectations with respect to return requirements or terms and conditions. The majority of business in January was written in Europe, the US and globally. With very few exceptions, Munich Re maintained the portfolio’s high quality thanks to stable contractual terms and conditions,” explains the company.
Overall, prices fell by 2.5% for Munich Re at the 1.1 2026 renewals, although the reinsurer says that the price level of its portfolio remained good. “Our prices largely compensated for higher loss estimates in some areas, which were primarily attributable to inflation or other loss trends,” says the firm.
Looking ahead to the April renewal, Munich Re expects a market environment in which attractive price levels and improved terms and conditions can be largely upheld despite the current market pressure.
Turning back to the carrier’s results, ERGO had a strong year with a net result of €917 million in 2025, up on the prior year’s €810 million, and again above the target of €900 million. Insurance revenue from insurance contracts issued rose to €21.681 billion in 2025 from €20.796 billion in 2024.
Munich Re’s investment result hit €7.514 billion in 2025, up on the prior year’s €7.191 billion, with a rise in regular income from investments to €8.56 billion. The 2025 investment result represents a return of 3.2% on the average market value of the portfolio.
As announced in December 2025, Munich Re is targeting an IFRS net result of €6.3 billion in the 2026 financial year, while group insurance revenue is expected to reach €64 billion, and the return on investment is expected to improve to more than 3.5%.
Yesterday, the reinsurer revealed its plan to propose a dividend of $24 per share for 2025, while the Board has also resolved to purchase own shares amounting to a maximum value of €2.250 billion.
