Scottish Friendly has reported record annual sales at £46.9m - up from £42m the previous year - but warned of a “challenging” year ahead due to the global economic and political situation.
The Glasgow-headquartered mutual recorded the best results in its 160-year history, with sales of its own-brand ISAs rise by 17% to £18.4m last year.
Its 2021 annual report also revealed revenue from its protection products via partners rising by 22% to £21.9m.
Overall assets under management were up from £5.3bn to £5.4bn, while membership grew by 31,000 to 776,000.
The record sales are the first for new chief executive Stephen McGee, who started on Tuesday, taking over from the late Jim Galbraith and following Martin Pringle’s time as acting chief executive.
McGee told Insider: “We have made long term investment into our business to improve the products and services we provide.
“We are also looking for the right targeted acquisitions, so that’s definitely a continuation of that strategy.
“Part of my ambition is to make Scottish Friendly the UK’s leading mutual insurer.”
He explained that the strategy will place the company in a good position to take on the “challenging year and year and a half ahead”, adding that his team had performed "incredibly well" given current circumstances.
“These results are testament to Jim and his legacy, the success of this last year would not have been possible without him or Martin, who has done a brilliant job in leading the business since Jim’s passing.
“This will impact global markets and businesses, however with a 160-year history, Scottish Friendly is well equipped to achieve our objective to provide long-term sustainable growth in value for our members during turbulent periods.”
David Huntley, chair of Scottish Friendly, added: “The outlook for the next 12 months is difficult to predict but stubbornly high inflation and rising interest rates are going to be a feature.
“However, record sales last year show that Scottish Friendly remains in a strong position, and we look forward to continuing our commitment to our customers, colleagues and the wider community.”
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