SEOUL, Samsung Life Insurance Co., South Korea’s top life insurer, said Tuesday its 2023 earnings soared nearly 20 percent from a year earlier on increased margins and investment returns.

Net profit came to 1.89 trillion won (US$1.41 billion) last year, up 19.7 percent from a year earlier, the company said in a statement.

Samsung Life Insurance, the insurance arm of top conglomerate Samsung Group, attributed the jump to a stable profit margin and increased investment profits.

The company’s so-called contractual service margin (CSM), a barometer of future earnings, stood at 12.2 trillion won as of end-2023, up 14 percent from a year earlier.

In particular, the CSM for new insurance contracts, reached 3.6 trillion won as of the end of last year thanks to the strengthening of its health insurance product lineup and the expansion of its share in the whole life insurance market, Samsung Life Insurance said.

As of end-December, Samsung Life Insurance’s assets totaled 314.7 trillion won, with its capital adequ
acy ratio reaching up to 250 percent, ranking among the highest figures among industry players.

The ratio refers to the amount of available capital compared with the required funds under the Korean Insurance Capital Standard, or K-ICS, which was implemented last year to require insurers to maintain their financial health.

Source: Yonhap News Agency