By Nathan Buck @ The Newest Corp News Team
Coming out of the pandemic, Generali, Italy’s oldest and largest insurance company, is looking to the future with an ambitious 3 year growth plan that will be presided over by new chairman, Andrea Sironi.
As Andrea Sironi explains from the top of the insurer's soaring, twisting Milan tower, Generali is not only the largest insurance company in Europe, but also has a presence in over 60 countries around the world.
What may be less known about Generali is that with it’s €700bn in total assets it is also a major financial institution, and, with an excellent 230% solvency ratio and strong ratings it is well-positioned for an aggressive growth strategy.
However, Sironi, prefers to call the philosophy driving the new plan “prudent growth” as maintaining Generali’s strong solvency margin is a priority.
When asked about his thoughts on possible misconceptions of doing business in Italy, Sironi believes that the significant amounts of direct investment from outside Italy as well as a strong market in exports and other ‘real economy’ markers have put to rest any fears that outdated ideas about business in Italy are hindering its economic prospects.
He does acknowledge, however, that Italy’s significant public debt is a vulnerability but sees it mitigated by the high amount of private financial wealth which puts its total debt level lower than even some leading EU countries such as France and Germany.
Later this week the Voice of Business will continue with parts 2 and 3 of our exclusive interview with Andrea Sironi, the new Chairman of Generali, as he explains to Gigi Stone Woods how the 190 year old insurance giant has successfully weathered the pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine from a position of being highly capitalized with good solvency ratings, why inflation is not a major challenge for the insurance industry, and much more.