First half 2004 outstrips whole of last year for Nationwide

Nationwide Towarzystwo Ubezpieczeń na Życie, the fifth largest company on the domestic life insurance market, plans to collect zł.270 million from policies taken out with the firm in the first half of the year, significantly up on the zł.192 million it raised through policy sales for the whole of 2003. Michał Biedzki, the insurance company's president, announced that he expects the figure for the whole of 2004 to be somewhere between zł.400-500 million, but added that the firm does not expect to post a profit until 2007. For the time being, the company's investor, American Nationwide Global Holdings, will continue to invest in the development of the company. Indeed, in April alone, it invested zł.40 million and it is estimated that the figure may rise by a further zł.10 million by the end of the year. Biedzki added that the American firm will plow in between zł.200-250 million during the next 3-5 years, which will allow the company to expand its range of products. (Puls Biznesu, p. 7; Parkiet, p. 9) E.B.