Beazley bounces back to profit after pandemic hit; CEO bullish on cyber market

London-listed specialty insurer  Beazley generated solid premium growth and a robust profit in 2021, turning around from a loss a year ago, on the back of solid growth across all lines of business. Its chief executive Adrian Cox (pictured) is bullish on the opportunities seen in the market, particularly in cyber, and expects to deliver double-digit growth in 2022.

Beazley reported a pre-tax profit of $369.2 million in the financial year 2021, compared with a pre-tax loss of $50.4 million a year ago.

Gross premiums written increased by 30% to $4.6 billion, compared with $3.6 billion in 2020.

Overall, the combined ratio for the full year improved significantly to 93% from 109% in 2020.

Cox said: “I'm delighted with Beazley's performance in 2021 where we have delivered GWP growth of 30% and a combined ratio of 93%, which has resulted in a robust profit of $369.2m.  We saw good growth across all our lines of business but were particularly encouraged by the opportunity in the cyber market where we continue to see significant rate improvement. We maintain our disciplined approach to cyber and remain excited about the opportunities for Beazley in this market and continue to invest in our cyber infrastructure.”

Commenting on the outlook, he said: “We are confident in delivering continued double-digit growth in 2022 and our strong capital levels support both our growth prospects and the reinstatement of our dividend where we have proposed 12.9p per share with respect to the whole of 2021. I approach the end of my first year as CEO of Beazley with confidence about the future.”

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