• CONSOLIDATED NET PROFIT OF € 19 MILLION (+11.8%)

• TOTAL PREMIUMS WRITTEN OF € 859 MILLION (-20.4%)

• Direct non-life premiums of € 398 million (+3.2%)

• Direct life premiums of € 450 million (-33.9%)

• COMBINED RATIO OF 96.5% (97.7% AS AT MARCH 31ST, 2011)

• SOLVENCY MARGIN 1.45 TIMES THE REGULATORY MINIMUM ASSIGNMENT OF CORPORATE OFFICES

Verona, May 15th, 2012

The Board of Directors of Cattolica Assicurazioni, chaired by Paolo Bedoni, approved today the Interim Management Report as at March 31st, 2012 of the Cattolica Group¹ . The first quarter of 2012 improved with respect to the previous year both in economic and financial terms.

The first three months of the year showed a consolidated net profit of € 19 million compared with € 17 million of the same period of 2011 (+11.8%); write-downs on portfolio investments accounted for € 3 million of profit². Net of extraordinary components, consolidated net profit would amount to € 22 million.

The Group’s net profit³ came to € 16 million compared with € 15 million last year (+6.7%). Net of the non-recurrent effects mentioned above, the Group’s net profit would come to € 18 million. Total direct and indirect business premiums written (life and non-life)⁴ amounted to € 859 million, decreasing by 20.4% compared with € 1,080 million in the corresponding period of the previous year, of which € 409 million in the non-life segment and € 450 million in the life segment. 

Non-life business

Direct premiums written rose from € 386 million as at March 31st, 2011 to € 398 million at the end of March 2012 (+3.2%). The motor business reported premiums written of € 239 million, increasing by 5.3% compared to March 31st 2011. Non-motor classes, with premiums written of € 159 million were essentially in line with respect to the same period last year. In the non-life business, the good industrial performance reached affected the combined ratio⁵ , which decreased from 97.7% as at March 31st, 2011 to 96.5%, showing a further improvement also compared to the end of 2011 (96.9%).

Life business

Direct life business premiums decreased compared to the previous year, coming to € 450 million compared with € 681 million at the end of March 2011 (-33.9%). Premiums written, in particular via the banking channel, were affected, at the market level, by the difficult financial and economic situation. Financial operations and equity position The result of investments⁶ amounted to € 132 million (compared with € 107 million as at March 31st, 2011). This result was obtained notwithstanding the write-downs on shares and bonds for a total of € 3 million⁷ . Investments amounted to € 15,777 million (€ 15,095 million as at December 31st, 2011).

Gross non-life technical provisions amounted to € 2,966 million and life business provisions, including financial liabilities, totalled € 12,680 million.

The figures as at March 31st, 2012, confirm the equity soundness of the Group with a consolidated shareholders’ equity of € 1,361 million (€ 1,223 million as at December 31st, 2011). The increase mainly results from the reduction of hidden capital losses on securities available for sale. At the end of March 2012, the solvency margin of the Group, before the application of the anti-crisis ISVAP Regulations, was 1.45 times the regulatory minimum (1.40 times as at December 31st, 2011⁸ ).

Sales network

The process of rationalisation of the agency network, which had 1,392 agencies at the end of March 2012 (1,398 at the end of 2011), continues. Bank branches selling the products of the Group as at March 31st, 2012 were 5,974, financial advisors were 949. Disclosures on the current period A further improvement of the life business and non-life business result is expected for the 2012 financial year. A special attention will be paid to life business in relation to the complex market situation, without prejudice to the pursuit of an adequate profitability. The management of investments will continue according to the usual criteria of prudence within a market context that remains volatile.

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The Chairman Paolo Bedoni declared: “Cattolica recorded good results in this first quarter of the year and showed a competitive capacity in a market strongly influenced by the recession and financial crisis. On this basis and in the light of the strategic directions of the recent Shareholders' Meeting, with the new appointments in the Board and in the Executive Committee, a governance that aims to strengthen the cooperative model and relationship with the territory is established”.

The Managing Director Giovan Battista Mazzucchelli declared: “The first quarter of 2012 closed with a net profit in line with our expectations, in a particularly difficult period from the economic point of view. The positive trend in business management, which is also affected by the general drop in premiums written for life business, is accompanied by the recovery of investments, which strengthens the financial operations and equity position of the company. Within this framework, the improvement of the combined ratio and the strengthening of the solvency margin are particularly significant”.

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Partial spin-off of the Cattolica Gestione Investimenti S.p.A. company in favour of Cattolica Assicurazioni⁹

The Board of Directors of Cattolica Assicurazioni approved today the partial spin-off of Cattolica Gestione Investimenti S.p.A. in favour of Cattolica Assicurazioni. The split-up branch will be merged into Cattolica in order to concentrate the activities of the Group concerning the management of the financial assets with the Parent Company. The transaction is subject to obtaining the necessary authorisations from the competent authorities. The documents required by the applicable legislation will be deposited under the terms and procedures established by the applicable laws and regulations.

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Assignment of corporate offices The Board of Directors of Cattolica Assicurazioni assigned during today's meeting the following corporate offices: Giulio Magagni as Senior Vice President, Aldo Poli as Secretary, and also appointed Pilade Riello and Giovannimaria Seccamani Mazzoli as members of the Executive committee.

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The Executive appointed to draw up the corporate accounting documents, Giuseppe Milone, hereby declares that pursuant to Article 154 bis, paragraph 2, of the Consolidated Finance Law, the accounting information provided in this release matches the information reported on the company’s documents, books and accounting records. The Company informs that the Interim Management Report as at March 31st, 2012 of the Cattolica Group will be at the disposal of the public at the Registered Office, at Borsa Italiana S.p.A. and on the Web site of the company at www.cattolica.it with the procedures and terms contemplated by the laws and regulations in force. 

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1 The interim management report relating to the first quarter of 2012 has been drawn up on the basis of Article 154 ter of the Consolidated Finance Law (TUF) and Consob Communication No. DEM/8041082 dated April 30th, 2008 and does not represent interim financial statements drawn up in pursuance of IAS 34.

2 Impairment on bonds and shares net of tax effects.

3 Net of minority interests.

4 Includes life insurance premiums and investment policies as defined by IFRS 4. 

5 Combined ratio of retained business: 1-(Technical balance/net premiums), including the other technical items.

6 With the exclusion of investments whose risk is borne by the policyholders.

7 Net of tax effects.

8 As at December 31st, 2011, before the application of the anti-crisis ISVAP Regulations, the solvency margin was 1.25 times the regulatory minimum. 

9 Note that the share capital of the company being split-up is wholly owned by Cattolica Assicurazioni and, therefore, the Procedure for the handling of related party transactions - approved by the Board of Directors of Cattolica on November 29th, 2010 - does not apply with reference to the approval of the transaction at issue, in that this Procedure contemplates, among other things, the exclusion of infragroup transactions (as in this case) provided that in the companies involved there are no significant interests of other related parties. This transaction is of minor importance in accordance with CONSOB Regulation no. 17221 of March 12th, 2011.