Excerpt
Table of contents
1. Introduction
2. Main part
a. Profile
b. History
c. Strategic Objectives and Priorities
d. Business Fields
i. Property and Casualty Insurance
ii. Life and Health Insurance
iii. Asset Management and Banking
3. Conclusion
1. Introduction
“In a changing environment, the companies of Allianz Group combine stability and continuity with the ability to act strategically.”
For decades “hoffentlich Allianz versichert” was the essence of insurance in Germany. Today, the Allianz Group convinced with the 3 P´s “Protection, Provision, Performance” worldwide. In spite of it, everybody aware that Allianz is only one of the world’s leading insurance companies. However, as a global financial services company, they are active in many other fields, through the named three core business areas, plus banking in Germany. Allianz stands also for customer focus, profitable and continuous growth and social responsibility. The continous growth results from convinced products, innovative ideas, a reliable service, consistent future-oriented management and the management of the employees. The solid pillar for profitable increase and the effective success are above all a consistent customer orientation, social acceptance and the status as an attractive employer for excellent employees.
“The Allianz Group – A company performance” provides an overview of the history, goals of the current activities and the business fields.
2. a. Profile
Allianz Group is a multinational group of 700 companies and more then 181,000 employees worldwide. Managed decentrally, Allianz Group possesses high levels of competency in local markets. This allows for maximum adaptability and a strenghthening of its local resources.
Over the last few decades, the Allianz has developed into a large international insurance group, present in over 70 countries. At the top of the international group is the holding company, Allianz AG, whose head office is in Munich. The key non-German companies are: Allianz Compañía de Seguros y Reaseguros (Spain), Allianz Elementar Versicherungen (Austria), Allianz Life Insurance (USA), Assurances Générales de France or AGF (France), Cornhill Insurance (Great Britain), Allianz Suisse (Switzerland), Fireman´s Fund (USA), PIMCO (USA) and Riunione Adriatica di Sicurtà or RAS (Italy).
Allianz is a company with a long history and a strong tradition. Founded in 1890 in Germany, Allianz now provides its more than 60 million clients worldwide with a comprehensive range of services through an international network of subsidiaries.
There are three core business areas:
- protection (property and casualty insurance)
- provision (life and health insurance) and
- performance (asset management and banking).
Through the purchase of Dresdner Bank, they have acquired a strong distribution channel in Germany and banking expertise throughout Europe. In fiscal 2001 Allianz’s total premium income amounted to over 75 billion euros. Of that total, just over half was generated by property and casualty insurance and slightly less than half by life and health insurance. Today, the majority of the Group’s premium income is earned outside Germany. Assets under management at the Allianz Group amounted to over 1.1 trillion euros at the end of 2001. Of these assets, 620 billion euros are managed for third parties.
2. b. History
Allianz Versicherungs-AG starts business with headquarters in Berlin in 1890. Only three years later, there was the opening of a branch office in London. The first listing of Allianz stock in the Berlin Stock Exchange was in 1895. Already in the beginning of the 19th century, 20 percent of the premium income were generated outside of Germany. At the end of the wave of mergers in the 1920s, among others, Bayrische Versicherungsbank, Stuttgarter Verein and Frankfurter Allgemeine Versicherungs-AG join Allianz. Into the early 30er the materials testing center for damage research, forerummer of the Allianz Center for Technology (AZT), was established. After the destruction of the head office of Allianz Lebensversicherung in Berlin in 1943, transfered the Allianz Versicherungs-AG headquarters from Berlin to Munich and the Allianz Lebensversicherungs-AG to Stuttgart in 1949. - Even in 1958 was introducted the advertising slogan "...hoffentlich Allianz versichert". - In 1959 were resumpted the foreign business activities with opening of an office in Paris, follows of the the opening of a management office in Italy, strengthened foreign expansions in Great Britian, the Netherlands, Spain, Brazil and the USA. In the course of the German reunification in 1990, the Allianz took over the state insurance company of the former German Democratic Republic and begans with activities in Eastern Europe, e.g. purchase of Hungária Biztosító, Budapest. Also the next years were marked of different M&A-activities, for example the acqusitions of the ELVIA Group, Zurich and Assurances Générales de France (AGF), Paris. The Vereinte Krankenversicherung AG developed into the health insurance provider of Allianz in 1997. One year later, the Allianz Asset Management GmbH, Munich was founded in order to strength the portfolio management as a core business.
Meanwhile, the Allianz Group seized varios companies - the introduction of the new Group logo should united all Group companies. Until today, M&A-activities determine the occurrence of Allianz in the economic life. So, there was the first listing of Allianz stock on the New York Stock Exchange in 2000. The latest big deal was the takeover of Dresdner Bank in 2001.
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