Great Eastern Holdings to issue bonus ordinary shares and Class C shares around Aug 19; declares 1H dividend of 50 cents

Great Eastern Holdings says it will proceed to issue 473.3 million of its bonus ordinary shares and, or its Class C non-voting shares on or around Aug 19.

The issuance comes after the group’s shareholders voted against delisting at its extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on July 8.

The announcement was made alongside the group's results statement, in which it reported earnings of $248.2 million for the 2QFY2025 ended June 30, 11% lower y-o-y. The earnings decline was due to lower profit from the group’s insurance business for the quarter.

In 2QFY2025, total weighted new sales fell by 19% y-o-y to $363.5 million mainly due to lower single premium sales in Singapore after a shift in product mix. The shift was said to align with the group’s emerging customer needs for longer-term financial planning priorities.

Despite the lower total weighted new sales, new business embedded value rose by 14% y-o-y to $167.7 million as overall margins grew. New business embedded value margins for the 2QFY2025 were up by 13.4 percentage points y-o-y to 46.1%.

During the 1HFY2025, Great Eastern Holdings’ earnings inched up by 1% y-o-y to $593.7 million.

Total weighted new sales for the period fell by 27% y-o-y to $708.6 million, while new business embedded value rose by 16% y-o-y to $316.5 million for the same reasons. New business embedded value margin for the period was up by 16.7% y-o-y to 44.7%.

According to the group, the capital adequacy ratios of its insurance subsidiaries in Singapore and Malaysia are “strong” and “well above” their respective minimum regulatory levels, although no numbers were revealed.

The group declared an interim dividend of 50 cents per share on a pre-bonus issue basis, or 11% higher than the group's previous payout. As the shares are expected to be allotted and issued before Aug 28, which is the record date of its interim dividend, the dividend - which will be split to 25 cents per share - will apply to all of the bonus shares issued on Aug 19.

As at June 30, cash and cash equivalents stood at $4.92 billion.

“The group saw modest growth in the first half of 2025 despite volatile market conditions, supported by the strength of our underlying business fundamentals and continued focus on disciplined management,” says group CEO Greg Hingston.

“The continued increase in the group’s new business embedded value is a testament to our commitment to serve different customer segments by introducing enhanced products and propositions to meet their evolving needs,” he adds.

On the outcome of the group’s July 8 EGM, Hingston notes that the “important decision has been made” and it is time for “us to move forward”. “We want to put all our focus on growing our business and striving for better performance.”

Great Eastern Holdings’ FY2025 interim dividend will be paid on Sept 5.

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