Axa Insurance in Ireland saw its revenue soar by 53 per cent last year to €1.7 billion as it began underwriting health insurance policies for the Laya Healthcare business it acquired in 2023.
Health gross written premiums amounted to €672 million, according to the company’s latest solvency and financial condition report, underpinned as Laya increased the cost of plans last year. The three other coverage providers in the market also hiked pricing last year amid rising claims and hospital charges.
A unit of Zurich-based reinsurance giant Swiss Re, called Elips Insurance, had underwritten Laya policies for years, meaning the business had essentially been a tied agent, both before and immediately after it was acquired in 2023 for €650 million from AIG.
Axa Ireland’s general insurance revenue in the Republic dipped by 4 per cent to €744 million in 2025, according to solvency and financial condition report, published on Axa Ireland’s website. This suggests it remained the second-largest player in the sector in the State for a second year running, having surrendered top spot to Allianz Ireland in 2024.
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Axa Ireland, part of the Paris-based Axa group, also reported €310 million of revenue from UK business. Its health revenue included €53 million from a pre-existing international health line of business before Laya was acquired.
The Irish business’s insurance underwriting profit more than doubled to €36 million last year, even as its general insurance claims costs rose. The industry was forced to deal with more than €300 million of claims stemming from Storm Éowyn in January 2025, the most expensive insurance event in Irish history.
Net profit fell by 28 per cent to €92 million, driven by a 47 per cent slump in net investment income, to €70 million.
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Axa Ireland, led by chief executive Marguerite Brosnan, took a pause from paying dividends to its parent in 2025, the first break in five years, as it built up capacity to start underwriting health insurance for Laya from the start of that year.
However, the latest solvency and financial condition report shows it plans to pay a €42 million dividend this year in its earnings for 2025. The Irish business paid €270 million of dividends over four years before last year’s hiatus, including money that was temporarily stored during the Covid-19 pandemic when regulators ordered insurers to avoid payouts and preserve capital.
It’s total capital reserves – after stripping out the planned dividend – stood at €749 million at the end of December, some 45 per cent above its regulatory solvency capital requirement.
Axa Ireland stands out among the main overseas-owned insurance companies operating in Ireland in not reporting reinsurance deals with parent companies. The Irish units of Allianz, Aviva and Intact Insurance each report significant reinsurance – or quota share – deals with other parts of their respective groups in their solvency and financial condition reports.
Axa is one of the largest insurance providers worldwide, with 92 million customers across 52 countries, according to its website.
