An arbitration tribunal has ruled against SCOR in a long-running dispute with Covéa over retrocession treaties. The Paris-based reinsurer disclosed the US$488.3 million compensation award.
The treaties covered the transfer of 30% of the life and health portfolio held by SCOR's Irish entities as at 31 December 2020. The agreements were signed in June 2021. Covéa launched arbitration proceedings in 2022 to enforce them.
The tribunal confirmed the validity of the treaties and ruled they would continue to be performed under their terms. It found it equitable to award $488.3 million in compensation to Covéa.
SCOR said the net impact on its Q2 2026 results would be approximately EUR 50 million after taking into account existing provisions. The company said the award would have no negative impact on its solvency ratio or liquidity position.
The treaties at the centre of the case did not arise in isolation. They were part of a broader peace settlement between the two French financial groups in June 2021. That deal ended years of litigation that began when Covéa made an unsolicited attempt to acquire SCOR in 2018 and was rebuffed.
The settlement included Covéa's exit from SCOR's share capital, the withdrawal of all outstanding legal actions and a seven-year mutual non-disparagement obligation. The quota share retrocession treaties covering SCOR's Irish Life & Health book were built into that same agreement.
The 2021 settlement did not resolve the underlying tensions between the two groups. In April 2025, SCOR confirmed it was under formal judicial examination in France. The inquiry concerned an alleged attempt to obstruct Covéa's acquisition of PartnerRe in 2022.
SCOR said the investigation focused on the alleged conduct of its former non-executive chairman, Denis Kessler, who died in June 2023. Covéa completed the PartnerRe purchase from Exor for US$9.3 billion in July 2022.
The arbitration award arrives as SCOR reports three consecutive quarters of profit growth. The group posted net income of €225 million in Q1 2026, with a return on equity of 21.7%. The solvency ratio reached 220% at end-March, the top of the firm's 185% to 220% target range.
Against that baseline, the €50 million net Q2 impact of the Covéa award represents less than a quarter of a single quarter's earnings. SCOR's Forward 2026 plan targets 9% annual economic value growth and a return on equity above 12%.
