Vital Forsikring Annual Report 2003 Vital Forsikring ASA Gjensidige NOR Spareforsikring ASA Contents Vital – Norway’s largest Annual Report & Accounts Photo life and pension company ______________ 1 Vital Forsikring ASA _________________ 19 As stated in the managing director’s com- The DnB NOR Group ________________3 (See separate table of contents) ments on page 5,Vital is focused on impro- Getting better every day Statements / Reports ________________ 50 ving its own performance, and draws inspira- – Managing Director _________________ 5 Technical insurance matters ___________ 52 tion from the performances recorded at the 2003 in brief ________________________ 6 highest level by partners sponsored by the Principal Figures / Annual Report & Accounts company.This year’s Annual Report presents Key Figures (pro forma) Gjensidige NOR Spareforsikring ASA ___ 54 photos of some of our partners who have –Vital Forsikring ______________________7 (See separate table of contents) also returned top-level performances. Asset Management Statements / Reports ________________ 91 Page – low interest rates Vital prize winner Liv Maria Roggen and strong stock markets ______________ 8 Kongsberg Jazz Festival ________________ 2 Corporate Market Definitions ________________________ 92 Biathlete – the leading company ________________ 9 Embedded Value Liv Grete Skjelbreid Poirée_____________ 4 Retail Market as at 31 December 2003 _____________ 94 Biathlete – Norway’s largest supplier ___________ 10 Ole Einar Bjørndalen_________________ 14 Public Sector Actor Richard Sseruwagi, – the leading private company _________ 11 Den Nationale Scene ________________ 20 Management _______________________ 12 Organisation _______________________ 15 Board of Directors __________________ 16 Branches _________________________ 17 Vital – Norway’s largest life and pension insurance company Vital Forsikring ASA is Norway’s largest Vital Forsikring was founded in 1990 on Vital Forsikring offers group pension company in the area of life insurance and the merger of Hygea (established 1884) insurance to the commercial and public pension saving and Vital Link AS is the and Norsk Kollektiv Pensjonskasse (esta- sectors, tailored to meet individual country’s undisputed leader in unit-linked blished 1938). In 1996 Vital became part of requirements, whether based on defined insurance.Vital Forsikring and its subsidia- the DnB Group.The merger of DnB and benefits, defined contributions, or on single ries Vital Eiendomsforvaltning and Vital Gjensidige NOR which resulted in DnB premium. In the individual market, long- Pekon, along with the associated company NOR was the reason why Vital Forsikring term savings products are provided in a Vital Link, comprise the business area and Gjensidige NOR Spareforsikring number of areas, including individual Life Insurance and Pensions of the merged on 9 March 2004 under the name pension agreements, annuities, saving with DnB NOR Group. of Vital Forsikring ASA. a choice of investment profile (unit-linked products from Vital Link),fund-based saving Together, the Vital companies have total Bjørn Østbø has been managing director (DnB NOR Kapitalforvaltning) and share- assets in the order of NOK 158 billion, of Vital Forsikring ASA since December index-linked bonds (DnB NOR Markets). a workforce of around 970 and approxi- 2003. Prior to this, Bjørn Østbø was mately 850 000 customers.The main func- managing director of the company. In addition to savings products, the tions are in Bergen and Trondheim and the Gunnar Gullaksen is managing director company also offers group life schemes company is represented throughout of Vital Link AS. and personal insurance. Norway through its own sales outlets and DnB NOR’s branch network, and through Along with DnB NOR,Vital Forsikring independent distributors and the Internet offers reasonable personal insurance to (vital.no). members of professional organisations with payment on death or disability, flexible pension schemes, non-life insurance and attractively priced housing loans. 1 This is DnB NOR DnB NOR ASA DnB NOR DnB NOR DnB NOR Vital Vital Vital Gjensidige Asset Kapital- Bank Management Link Skade Forsikring NOR Fonds- ASA forvaltning AS AS ASA forsikring Holding Holding AS (Sweden) AB AS Subsidiaries Subsidiaries Subsidiaries Subsidiaries Vocalist Live Maria Roggen was awarded DnB NOR ASA is Norway’s largest management and securities operations. the Vital Prize / Kongsberg Jazz Festival’s financial services group, with combined The Group has a leading position in main musical prize for 2003. Explaining total assets of around NOK 1 200 billion. Norway within real estate broking and their choice, the panel said that with her The Group has more than 2 million retail the provision of credit cards. DnB NOR is intellectual approach, combined with customers, around 150 000 corporate an important partner for Norwegian customers and more than 700 000 life businesses abroad and large international charm, charisma and a beautiful voice, insurance customers. DnB NOR’s opera- companies in Norway. The Group is she stimulates interest in the jazz tions are based on more than 180 years’ Norway’s leading foreign exchange bank classics to the delight of an increasingly experience as a supplier of financial and one of the world’s foremost shipping broad audience services in Norway. banks. Among the strong brands inclu- ded in the Group are DnB NOR, Vital, Goals Nordlandsbanken, Cresco, Postbanken, DnB NOR aims to be the leading financial Avanse and Carlson. services group in Norway and among the leading financial services groups in the Represented throughout Norway – Nordic region. and abroad DnB NOR’s overriding financial targets After the completion of the merger in the include creating shareholder value course of 2004, DnB NOR will have 215 through an attractive and competitive bank branches. The Group has a long- return and distributing approximately 50 term cooperation agreement with per cent of profits as dividends provided Gjensidige NOR Forsikring, which that capital adequacy remains at a satis- among other things enables the bank to factory level. Moreover, the Group aims offer customers simple non-life insurance to have a return on equity in excess of 14 products. Cooperation with 16 regional per cent before goodwill amortisation, a savings banks involves the provision of core capital ratio of around 7 per cent and technological solutions and distribution an AA level rating for ordinary long-term of the Group’s products. Through an debt for banking operations. agreement with Norway Post, the Group’s products and services are distri- Strategy buted through around 300 post offices, DnB NOR will create value for share- some 1 200 in-store postal outlets and holders, customers, employees and other more than 2 000 rural postmen. In addi- stakeholders by realising identified tion, DnB NOR has an international net- synergies, creating new solutions in the work of 13 branches and representative merged group and exploiting the oppor- offices, along with subsidiaries in tunity for strategic repositioning provided Sweden, Luxembourg, Great Britain, by the merger. Singapore and the US. DnB NOR will be the best financial part- ner for Norwegian retail and corporate Legal structure customers and the preferred partner in DnB NOR ASA was established on Norway for international customers. The 4 December 2003 through the merger of Group will develop its customer base and DnB Holding ASA and Gjensidige NOR attractive product platforms in the home ASA. Den norske Bank ASA and Union market which can also serve as a basis Bank of Norway ASA merged on 19 for growth in a Nordic and international January 2004, and Vital Forsikring ASA perspective. In addition, DnB NOR will and Gjensidige NOR Spareforsikring ASA maintain a leading position in all strategic merged on 9 March 2004. A number of product areas. other group subsidiaries will merge during the course of 2004. Market leader Some companies will be sold. DnB NOR is market leader in Norway The chart above illustrates the legal within lending, deposits, life insurance structure of the Group at end-March and pensions, equity funds, asset 2004. 3 Getting better every day Biathlete Liv Grete Skjelbreid Poirée When Liv Grete Skjelbreid Poirée stormed other top athletes are. Every single mem- reinforced her position as the queen of over the finishing line to win the Scratch ber of staff must realise his/her potential, the biathletes with four gold medals Start at the World Biathlon Championships and as managers we must prepare the way during the Biathlon World Champion- in Oberhof in Germany on Saturday, 14 for training and development, and focus on ships which took place in February 2004 February 2004, it reconfirmed by belief what is most important. We must ensure that with hard and targeted work it is that our teams work well together and that in Oberhof.Vital is the general sponsor possible to repeat good performances all managers and personnel help to steadi- of the Norwegian Biathlon Association. again and again... ly improve each other’s performance. (Photo: Marcel Lelienhof) Not only did she win the Scratch Start – I am convinced that we have much to learn making this her fourth gold medal at this from sport at the top level. An important year’s World Championships – she won by part of Vital’s activities in the area of spon- a margin of almost one and a half minutes. soring involves co-operation with sports It was a display of strength seldom seen, trainers, leaders and athletes at the top and a fitting conclusion to the participation level in Norway. Liv Grete and our biath- of this young housewife and mother from letes play a central role in this process of Norway’s Hålandsdalen in the World co-operation. Championships in which she simply out- classed the field. By developing a culture targeted on results, emulating sport at the highest Bård Benum was appointed Naturally, I was both proud and pleased at level, we shall reinforce and strengthen managing director of Vital her fantastic victory as I stood on the stand the position of the merged Vital as the Forsikring ASA in along with a number of clients who had leading company in the area of life and December 2003.