Benfield pre-tax profits fall but revenue rises

Benfield has announced its preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 2005.

The company's pre-tax profit fell from £57.9m in 2004 to £53.8m in 2005. Its after-tax profit for the financial year rose by 12.2% from £31.1m to £34.9m.

Benfield's revenue rose by 6.8% from £303.5m to £324.1m. The group's trading result — operating profit from continuing operations before goodwill impairment, depreciation of tangible fixed assets and exceptional items — fell by 26.7% to £63.3m.

Benfield's board has proposed a final dividend of 7p per share, making a total dividend of £10.5p per share.

During the year, Benfield staff costs increased by £23.6m, largely as a result of investment in recruiting for both the existing reinsurance business and the new team focused on marine, energy and power.

Grahame Chilton, Benfield's chief cxecutive, said: “2005 presented some tremendous opportunities for Benfield. As expected, our 2005 result was affected by planned investment in our new insurance broking business, Benfield Corporate Risk, and in further strengthening our core reinsurance business. I am delighted with the initial performance of Benfield Corporate Risk which already has an impressive customer roster and is on target to meet its revenue and margin goals, while the core reinsurance business has been successful in attracting new talent.

“Last year's devastating hurricane losses offered an opportunity for us to demonstrate Benfield's ability to perform in challenging market conditions on distribution and claims servicing as well as accessing the capital markets to create capacity. We continue to see increased demand for our expertise in these areas. Benfield is extremely well positioned in current market conditions and we remain confident that our recent investments have significantly enhanced the group's prospects for longer term growth.”