Generali shareholders approve the 2020 financial statements signed by CEO Philippe Donnet with a majority that is close to unanimity: 99.85%. “The meeting of the Lion, in short, renews the confidence in the French manager after the turbulent eve marked by the gesture of the second shareholder of the Lion, Francesco Getano Caltagirone, who decided not to register his shares and therefore not to vote, thus launching a a sign of intolerance to the top management of the insurance company and to the first shareholder Mediobanca.
Donnet, who begins the last year of his three-year mandate today, is already looking ahead and announces the start of the study of the plan to 2024 based on growth but in substantial continuity with the current strategy. A first meeting of the board of directors on the subject is scheduled for May. “We are working on the definition of the next plan and we have a solid foundation to build it,” he tells members connected in streaming.
“I am very confident in the future of Generali and in the people I work with to conclude this plan and finalize that for the next three years”, says the manager according to whom “Generali 2021” has proved to be “a forward-looking plan, based on four beliefs that, in the light of the pandemic, are and will be more valid and important than ever “The reference is” to the increasing attractiveness of the European insurance markets. “So” the importance of developing an innovative and personalized offer for retail customers and for small and medium-sized enterprises. “Then” to the ever stronger integration between the insurance and asset management sectors. “Finally,” I refer to the fundamental value that derives from having a physical network of agents without equal, and to the need to make it even stronger thanks to technologies and digital tools “.
The plan will then see the theme of sustainability as “an umbrella that embraces our entire strategy”. For Donnet, “continuity with the current plan” will be “a fundamental element of the strategic cycle that we will undertake in a few months, and will help to continue to create long-term sustainable value for each of you, as we have always done”. The goal, «once again, is to define ambitious growth objectives and to strengthen the group’s ability to produce sustainable results over time. As I have said several times, I am very confident in the future of Generali and in the extraordinary qualities of its people, with whom I work every day to successfully conclude the current plan and prepare that for the next three years ».
As for the acquisition policy, according to Donnet in 2020 Generali has «demonstrated its ability to generate profitable growth, strengthening its leadership in Europe, taking over the activities of Axa in Greece and completing the integration of assets in Portugal in nine months. “We have shown our ability to pursue external growth in a disciplined and consistent manner with our mergers and acquisitions strategy”,