Challenger has increased its half-year dividend by 21 per cent to 11.5¢ per share on the back of a 27 per cent rise in net profit after tax to $282 million.
In an ASX listing on Thursday (17 February), Challenger reported assets under management (AUM) of $115 billion, an increase of 20 per cent on the year, driven by strong growth across both Life and Funds Management.
The life business delivered record-breaking sales driving book growth of over 8 per cent for the half-year to $1.4 billion.
Life sales rose 44 per cent to $4.9 billion, whilst annuity sales increased by 15 per cent to $2.5 billion.
“As the clear leader in retirement incomes, and one of the fastest growing active funds managers in the country, complemented by the strategic acquisition of our new digital bank, Challenger has a unique opportunity to meet the needs of more Australians entering and in retirement,” said managing director and chief executive officer, Nick Hamilton.
Funds Management produced another strong result, with funds under management expanding 20 per cent to $109 billion.
In the first half of 2022, Challenger completed the acquisition of its digital bank, MyLife MyFinance Limited (MLMF), with the integration said to be “progressing well”.
Going into the second half of 2022, Challenger has announced five key priorities to drive growth including strategic opportunities with Apollo, with which it inked a non-binding memorandum of understanding to establish a joint venture to build a leading non-bank lending business in Australia and New Zealand.
“The announcement of our non-binding memorandum of understanding with Apollo Asset Management is an exciting step forward in continuing to develop our relationship, as well as being aligned to our strategy and focus on growth opportunities,” said Mr Hamilton.
“We are well positioned to benefit from the greatest thematic opportunity of our time, retirement; we have a strong earnings base for growth in 2022 and beyond; and a highly capable and talented team who are committed to fulfilling our purpose of providing customers with financial security for a better retirement.”
