MEDELLIN, Colombia, April 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Yesterday GRUPO SURA reported its financial results for Q1 2012. Profits came to COP 178,233 million (USD 99.5 million), showing a YoY growth of 135%, which went over and above the forecast by the Company, thanks mainly to the results posted by SURA Asset Management, the Group's sub-holding, representing the assets recently acquired from ING, as well as SURAMERICANA, its insurance and social security sub-holding, that also got off to an excellent start to the year.

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Clearly GRUPO SURA is beginning to reap value from the expansion begun last year. On the one hand, SURA Asset Management posted USD 291 million in revenues for this past quarter, going far beyond the initial projections drawn up prior to the ING acquisition. Its EBITDA came to USD 110.3 million with assets managed by the companies reporting to SURA Asset Management in Latin America reaching USD 76.2 billion. Furthermore, its total affiliate base rose to 10.9 million.

In addition to having achieved a successful and seamless integration, the Companies that were acquired from ING produced an excellent level of performance, mainly due to factors such as higher pension commissions thanks to a 19% rise in the salary/wage base of our affiliates throughout the region. This was also helped on by the performance of Seguros de Vida Chile's investment portfolio and the technical market obtained by our life annuity business in Mexico. The fact that the Latin American markets are recovering well is also having a positive effect on the returns obtained from our statutory pension reserves.

"We are very pleased to see that our strategic investments got off to an excellent start to the year. SURAMERICANA, amply known for its leadership and financial soundness, had a very good first quarter and our subsidiary SURA Asset Management, who is reporting its financial results for the first time ever, has more than confirmed the excellent prospects we identified when we first set out to acquire ING's Latin American business" stated David Bojanini, Chief Executive Officer of GRUPO SURA.

As for our insurance and social security sub-holding SURAMERICANA S.A., the figures reported today show an excellent level of performance for this past quarter. Revenues here came to COP 55,927 million (USD 31.2 million), showing a YoY increase of 55.6% for a 71.0% increase in profits amounting to COP 52,058 million (USD 29.1 million). Furthermore, assets increased by 16.2% for a total of COP 1.71 billion (USD 952.9 million), mainly due to investment gains. YTD earnings increased Shareholders Equity by 16.4%, which came to COP 1.52 billion (USD 853.7 million), at the end of Q1 2012.

Another important highlight this year is that GRUPO SURA is now reducing its debt and dismantling the temporary loans that formed part of the financing for the ING acquisition. At March 31 2012, our financial obligations dropped by COP 57,088 million (USD 31.9 million) and subsidiary loans came to COP 729,837 million (USD 320.8 million). The figures we are reporting today do not include the funds received in April from Bancolombia, in its capacity as co-investor in SURA Asset Management. The Company therefore posted a more adequate debt ratio of 11.47% for this past first quarter and plans to end this year with similar levels to those held prior to the acquisition carried out last year.

"Once again we are highly gratified with the sound performance of our portfolio, and the results we are happy to report today are the product of the knowledge and expertise of the excellent teams we have in each of our companies" concluded David Bojanini.

ABOUT GRUPO DE INVERSIONES SURAMERICANA 

Grupo de Inversiones Suramericana (BVC: Common: GRUPOSURA, Preferred: PFGRUPSURA, OTC: Common: GIVSY, Preferred GIVPY, Latibex: Common: XGSUR) –GRUPO SURA- is a Latin American company listed on the Colombian Stock Exchange and registered with the ADR- Level 1 program in the United States. It is also listed with the Latibex Market for Latin American Stocks in Euros hosted by the Madrid Stock Exchange. We are also the one of the three major Latin American financial institutions to be admitted to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), which monitors companies who have become global benchmarks thanks to the good practices they have adopted from the economic, environmental and social standpoints. GRUPO SURA has two fields of investment, the first being its strategic investments in the financial services, insurance, social security as well as complementary service sectors, and the second corresponds to its portfolio investments in the food, cement and energy sectors.

GRUPO SURA now enjoys No. 1 position in the Latin American Pension Fund sector while ranking as one of the top players in the region's insurance, savings and investment sectors.

CONTACT:

Luis Eduardo Martinez
Investor Relations Director
GRUPO SURA
(574) 4355628
lemartinez@gruposura.com.co

Monica Guarin Montoya
Communications Manager
GRUPO SURA
(574) 4355935
mguarin@gruposura.com.co

SOURCE Grupo de Inversiones Suramericana S.A.