Generali Luxembourg celebrated the opening of its new headquarters on 8 February 2024, situated within the environmentally certified Cubus building, which reflects Generali’s Luxembourg dedication to providing a modern workspace for its employees, according to the insurer’s . The CEO of Generali Luxembourg, , explained to Delano that this move signifies a departure from the past, where the workplace lacked modern amenities.
During the interview, Lecoublet remembered how, “in December 2020, when I joined the company, we were 35 people and it was a very small company.” Despite its small size, Generali Luxembourg had a ambitious vision to revamp and expand the company’s presence, both geographically and operationally, he said. At present, Generali Luxembourg has a workforce of 70 employees.
5+1 geographical presence
“We are distributing our services [under] the full freedom to provide services and we are present in five countries: France, Italy, Belgium, Monaco and Spain.” Lecoublet added that Generali Luxembourg offers wealth planning services to expatriates, assisting them during transitions between countries, whether moving internationally or relocating, for example, from France. “Dubai last year was a famous country, and we had a lot of policies in this case.”
Additionally, Generali Luxembourg offers life insurance products to “French and Italian residents, who have funds, equities and bonds, etc. in a private bank in Switzerland,” he said. “It’s a specific case.”
Lecoublet highlighted Luxembourg’s key markets, noting that in 2022, France and Italy collectively contributed to 70% of the total gross written premium life insurance, which amounted to €22bn across all countries.
Confident outlook for 2023 financial performance
Lecoublet projected that when the firm reports its 2023 financials, insurance premiums in Luxembourg will reach €900m. Reflecting on last year, he noted that “the economic context was quite complex for insurance companies, because of the geopolitical context with the war in Ukraine and the situation in Israel,” along with significant “increase in the interest rates”. Despite these obstacles, Generali Luxembourg remains highly “confident about our capacity to maintain a very strong capital position.”
As for 2023 financial results, he stressed that it “will be very good, and that’s why it’s not a big topic for us, because we have a strategy in terms of financials, which is very resilient. And we do not expect any problem about the solvency ratio and our capacity to continue the business.”
Luxembourg is a perfect place for high-net-worth individuals. Luxembourg is a perfect place for unit-linked [life insurance]
Unit-linked life insurance doubled growth
Lecoublet highlighted that Generali Luxembourg stands out in the market by offering clients both guaranteed fund and unit-linked life insurance contracts, a competitive advantage over other insurance companies. “It’s not the case for all the competitors present in the market”.
He noted that between 2019 and 2024, Generali Luxembourg’s growth trajectory of unit-linked life insurance contracts doubled and reached 80% of the total assets under management (AUM). Additionally, he estimated that the AUM would stand at €6bn by end 2023.
Three pillars: Technology, social responsibility, and market expansion
Lecoublet said that Generali Luxembourg chartered its strategy for the upcoming three years and identified three key pillars.
The first one is prioritise engagement with advanced technologies, “such as the cloud, robotics, and process automation. And of course, the new technologies such as generative artificial intelligence…to deliver the best service to our partners,” he explained.
If we can make a snapshot, the situation is not very good, we can improve it, it’s essential to take some action in order to promote them
The second pillar focuses on the company’s reputation and its social impact. “We launched the Human Safety Net association in 2023,” across all geographical areas where Generali operates. “The association [aims] to support refugees to go back to the workplace and to find employment, or to be an entrepreneur and to be able to start a new business.” Lecoublet added that Generali implemented two additional important actions aimed to support the position of women in the financial industry.
“The first one we signed with at Luxembourg Stock Exchange, the Luxembourg Women in Finance Charter,” recalled Lecoublet. “It’s not symbolic”, he said, adding that it’s a commitment, with tangible steps by providing key performance indicators, outlining the company policies to promote women to management or leadership roles. “We are clearly and totally committed to promoting them, in order to be able to demonstrate that we are aligned with diversity and inclusion in our society, and especially in the financial place of Luxembourg.”
In furtherance of this commitment, aimed at empowering women positions in the finance industry, “we took part in task force named the Luxembourg Gender Finance Task Force, recently launched by the Ministry of Finance.” He added, “I am very happy to be one of the twelve members of this task force.”
Lecoublet opined: “If we can make a snapshot, the situation is not very good, we can improve it, it’s essential to take some action in order to promote them. Because I am absolutely convinced that to fuel a more efficient team, we need to be strong on diversity and inclusion. We need men, and we need women and from different regions. It’s not complicated to say that it could be complex to deliver [and] to put in place.”
He emphasised the significance of this initiative in a multicultural environment like Luxembourg, “we have a lot of people from different countries speaking different languages, and [they are] very precious assets [for the] country.”
The third pillar of Generali Luxembourg revolves around enhancing the ability to offer products across Europe, explained Lecoublet. “Our goal is to be able to promote our products in different European countries, where our partners [and] our clients seek new savings solutions, especially for high-net-worth individuals…That’s why we are working on our development in Belgium, in Spain… and we have some assets in Switzerland”.
This article was published for the Delano Finance newsletter, the weekly source for financial news in Luxembourg. .