A major operator in asset management in France

Covéa Finance is Covéa Group's only portfolio management company. Within the Finance Division, it manages listed negotiable instruments, stocks, fixed-income instruments and mutual funds.
From the organisation's viewpoint, the highlight of the year was the merger of Covéa Finance and MMA Finance. This merger was part of Covéa's construction process. It arises from the wish to optimise resources within the Group.

The outcome is a one-of-a-kind management company, the sixth largest on the French insurance market, with over 71 billion euros of assets in its care. Today, our size is an advantage, giving us greater scope for action on the financial markets.

Active management

The topmost priority of Covéa Finance's code of ethics is to ensure, in all transparency, services tailored to the needs of its customers, principals and savings-plan holders. As a specialist in asset management for life insurance and property and casualty insurance companies,  Covéa Finance's business benefits all the insurance companies of both the Group and its partners. Its management policy seeks long-term performance by choosing the best compromise between risk and yield. To do so, Covéa Finance implements active management, chiefly oriented to the macroeconomy. Its main goal is to identify market changes as early as possible. The investment process is rigorous and extremely disciplined in the area of risk control. The company does not use credit derivatives.

Democratic, fair governance

Since Covéa is both a customer and the sole shareholder Covéa Finance, Covéa Finance has a unique standing compared to other management companies. . This situation led to the implementation of an original form of governance making it possible for each party to protect its interests.

The internal organisation must maintain and promote constant consultation between mutual insurance companies, institutional investors and managers of Covéa Finance. Each management mandate of the mutuals is therefore supervised by the Financial Strategy Divisions of MAAF, MMA and GMF. Further to this measure, the directors of SGAM's property and casualty and life insurance companies sit on Covéa Finance's Supervisory Board

Results

In a very delicate market, with on-going uncertainty regarding economic recovery in France, Covéa Finance both successfully reorganised following the merger and posted a very strong performance for the companies. These results were evidenced in the rates of return delivered by each of the companies of Covéa Group.
In 2010, Covéa Finance performed 36,000 management transactions, all within the framework of a very strict control chain.
Covéa Finance posted gross premiums of 70 million euros for an increased net profit of 14.42 million euros.

Key figures (at 31 december 2010)

• 71.2 billion of assets managed
• 102 employees
• 85 mutual funds (including 16 employee savings shemes)

www.covea-finance.fr