Insurance Industry in Cologne

We’ve got it covered in Cologne

Cologne is one of the most important centres for the German insurance industry. More than fifty German insurers and reinsurers have their headquarters in the city, and a further sixty have a branch here, including the prestigious firms DEVK, Gothaer, HDI-Gerling and DKV. There are also more than twenty international groups represented by branch establishments: from AXA to Atradius and General Reinsurance. The Zurich Group also moved into their new corporate headquarters here in 2019.

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50.00 Insurance headquarters

25000.00 Employees

44.42 bil Euros revenue/year

- KölnBusiness — The headquarters of Gothaer insurance in Cologne.

Woven into Cologne’s economy

Approximately 3,000 other Cologne-based companies, including a large number of innovative, technology-based startups, are interconnected with the local insurance industry through their products and services. With around 25,000 employees paying into social security, Cologne is Germany’s second largest insurance location. The local industry generates around 44 billion Euros each year.

Strong tradition in the region

Cologne has a long-standing reputation as an insurance location and has fostered a number of innovations over the years. For example, the first life insurance policy was initiated in the city in 1852; and in 1882, the first private health insurer opened its doors here. Comprehensive insurance for motor vehicles as well as unemployment insurance likewise have their origins in Cologne.

Innovative solutions for the industry are still being developed here – for example in the area of digital insurance solutions at the city's universities. The Institute of Insurance Science (IVK) at Cologne University and the Institute of Insurance Economics (ivwKöln) at the Technical University of Cologne are two of the most prominent training and research institutions for the sector in the country. The IVK is actually the largest university institute in Germany specifically geared to the insurance industry.

Shaping the future of the industry

More recently, InsurLab Germany, the biggest initiative in the German insurance industry, was established in Cologne in 2017. Its main objective is to propel innovation and digitalisation in this field and to steer the future of the insurance industry. As one of the most prominent international trade fair cities, Cologne is also the venue for various industry congresses in the sector: from insureNXT|CGN to Zukunftsforum Assekuranz and the Cologne Insurance Symposium.