According to Prudential, in 1Q2025, new business profit on a traditional embedded value went up 12% to $608m, annual premium equivalent (APE) sales went up 4% to $1.7bn and new the new business margin increased by two percentage points.
“Our on-going focus on quality growth in new business profit continues to produce attractive returns and capital generation. Our strong 2025 first quarter new business performance reflects the benefits of our on-going efforts to build and modernise our capabilities to better serve our customers,” said Prudential CEO Anil Wadhwani.
Mr Wadhwani noted that across the business, Prudential is continuing to advance their operational efficiency by investing in technology and refining their operating model. The insurer also welcomed new talent with the appointment of Mr John Cai to lead the agency channel across their markets and serve as regional CEO for Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam.
He commented, “We continued to deliver shareholder value in 2025 having completed an additional $442m (49 million shares) of repurchases under our $2bn share buyback programme between 1 January and 23 April 2025.
We continue to evaluate a potential listing of our India asset management business, as discussed in our 2024 Annual Report, with the intention that net proceeds would be returned to shareholders.”
He added, “The current tariff uncertainty does not directly impact our business but has resulted in global economic and market volatility, with the impacts of the latter illustrated by our published sensitivities. We remain confident that, despite the wider macroeconomic uncertainty, our robust solvency position and multi-channel, multi-market franchise situates us well for long-term success in this highly profitable and attractive growth business.”
APE sales and new business profit (NBP) for the three months ended 31 March 2025
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APE sales ($bn)
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NBP ($m)
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Total
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1.7
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608
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Total new business margin (%)
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36%
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Market highlights for the three months ended 31 March 2025
Hong Kong
Prudential delivered double-digit growth in new business profit for the first three months of 2025. Growth in both the domestic and Mainland Chinese Visitor markets was driven by higher volumes and margin expansion as we continued to benefit from 2024 repricing actions.
Mainland China
The joint venture CITIC Prudential Life delivered double digit new business profit growth compared with the same period in the prior year, in the seasonally strong first quarter. This performance was supported by actions to rebalance the product portfolio to drive profitability, sustainability and manage risk.
Prudential expects the recently announced regulator-led agency reform will support high-quality agency development across the industry and have a positive impact on market dynamics.
Indonesia
Prudential maintained their momentum following the on-going operational transformation, delivering strong double-digit new business profit growth in the first quarter of 2025. This was supported by the launch of new medical products through the agency channel beginning in the second quarter of 2024, leading to an increase in the proportion of APE sales being health and protection.
Malaysia
Business in Malaysia saw new business profit decline on the back of a strong prior period comparator. New business profit levels continued to reflect the ongoing changes made in health pricing and also that the bancassurance channel continues to be a significant contributor to new business.
Singapore
The Singapore business delivered double-digit growth in new business profit in the first three months of 2025, with growth in both agency and bancassurance channels.
Growth markets and other
This segment saw double digit new business profit growth in the first quarter driven by sustained strong double digit growth in Taiwan and double-digit growth in the Philippines.
This growth was partially offset by a decline in Vietnam following Prudential’s focus on quality and where challenging consumer confidence continues to hold back recovery in that market in the near term.
India remains a strategic market, especially for insurance and health business, and the insurer is going through the regulatory approval process for the proposed Indian standalone health insurance joint venture.