Press Release

2008/04/01

Group | Munich Health

- Munich Re concludes acquisition of Sterling Life Insurance Company

- Purchase of leading US provider of health insurance benefits for seniors strengthens International Health segment

As announced in December 2007, Munich Re has acquired a 100% stake in Sterling Life Insurance Company (Sterling) for a purchase price of €243m (US$ 352m).

With total premium income in 2007 of US$ 798m and 176,000 clients, Sterling is one of the leading providers in the US market of health insurance benefits for the 50+ and 65+ age brackets. Sterling holds a strong position in the growing market for Medicare Advantage plans. Medicare Advantage plans are health plan options that are part of the US government’s Medicare programme and are administered by private insurance companies. The senior markets are the highest growth segments in the US healthcare sector.

Wolfgang Strassl, Munich Re Board member responsible for HealthCare, stressed: "The acquisition of Sterling was a key step for us in implementing our International Health strategy. Sterling strengthens our competence as a global provider of integrated solutions in healthcare management."

Münchener Rückversicherungs-Gesellschaft
signed Dr. Strassl signed Dr. Lawrence

The Munich Re Group operates worldwide, turning risk into value. In the financial year 2007, it achieved a profit of €3,937m, the highest since the company was founded in 1880, on premium income of approximately €37bn. The Group operates in all lines of business, with more than 38,000 employees at over 50 locations throughout the world and is characterised by particularly pronounced diversification, client focus and earnings stability. With premium income of around €21.5bn from reinsurance alone, it is one of the world's leading reinsurers. Its primary insurance operations are mainly concentrated in the ERGO Insurance Group. With premium income of over €17bn, ERGO is one of the largest insurance groups in Europe and Germany. It is the market leader in Europe in health and legal expenses insurance, and 34 million clients in 26 countries place their trust in the services and security it provides. The global investments of the Munich Re Group amounting to €176bn are managed by MEAG, which also makes its competence available to private and institutional investors outside the Group.

Disclaimer
This media information contains forward-looking statements that are based on current assumptions and forecasts of the management of Munich Re. Known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the forward-looking statements given here and the actual development, in particular the results, financial situation and performance of Munich Re. The company assumes no liability to update these forward-looking statements or to make them conform to future events or developments.

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