Financial result, result before taxes and cash flow
Financial result
A detailed disclosure of the financial result (excluding shares in at equity consolidated companies) is included in Note 16. Financial result excl. result from shares in at equity consolidated companies in the notes to the consolidated financial statements.
The financial result (incl. the result from shares in at equity consolidated companies) was EUR 797.2 million in 2022 (2021: EUR 631.9 million). The increase of 26.2% compared with the previous year is due primarily to the first-time consolidation of the Aegon companies in Hungary and Türkiye acquired in 2022 as well as higher interest rates. Both effects overcompensated the impairments in connection with exposure to Russian government bonds and corporate bonds in the amount of EUR 84.1 million.
Result before taxes
The Group result before taxes was EUR 562.4 million in 2022 (2021: EUR 511.3 million). The significant 10.0% increase in profits is primarily the result of the good operating performance and the improved financial result. In addition, the Group result before taxes includes impairments of goodwill and of other intangible assets that amount to EUR 67.6 million.
Adjusted for Impairments of intangible assets, the operating result of EUR 630.0 million for 2022 was 23.0% above that of the previous year (2021: EUR 512.0 million).
Cash flow
The cash flow from operating activities mainly increased as a result of the significantly higher business operating result, which rose from EUR 522.1 million in 2021 to EUR 625.0 million in 2022. The cash flow from investing activities developed from EUR -415.5 million in 2021 to EUR -1,001.4 million as a result of the acquisition of the Aegon companies in Hungary and Türkiye. Financing activities produced a cash flow of EUR -24.1 million in 2022 (2021: EUR 597.7 million). The high positive cash flow from the previous year was mainly due to the issue of the VIG Holding hybrid bond and sustainability bond. The Group had cash and cash equivalents of EUR 2,059.0 million at the end of 2022 (2021: EUR 2,456.3 million). The amount of interest and dividends received was EUR 840.9 million in 2022 (2021: EUR 719.7 million).