The Annual General Meeting of Hannover Re was held on 3 May 2012 at the HCC - Hannover Congress Centrum. Shareholders, shareholder and bank representatives as well as guests took up the invitation of the Executive Board and Supervisory Board in large numbers. Altogether, a good 76% of the share capital was represented. In his address to the meeting Chief Executive Officer Ulrich Wallin took the opportunity to look back once more on the 2011 financial year, in which Hannover Re had still been able to generate a pleasing result despite heavy major losses from floods in Australia and Thailand, earthquakes in New Zealand and the devastating seaquake off the coast of Japan and subsequent tsunami.

For the first time Hannover Re offered its shareholders the opportunity to exercise their voting rights at the Annual General Meeting by postal vote – in addition to the normally available options of personal voting on site as well as voting through an authorised representative or through a proxy nominated by the company. In the votes that were taken the Annual General Meeting adopted by a large majority the resolutions proposed by the Executive Board and Supervisory Board. Among other things, the Annual General Meeting approved the resolution to convert Hannover Re into a European limited company (SE). By taking this decision Hannover Re is not only modernising its legal form, it is also giving clearer expression to the company’s international dimension. At the same time, it will enjoy greater flexibility in being able to respond to future legal or regulatory requirements.

The results of the voting and the attendance were published on the company’s website following the Annual General Meeting.