Group overview
Holding company cash flow
Download Group overview – Holding company cash flow as Excel file
| 2008 £m | 2007 £m | |
|---|---|---|
| Half year | Half year | |
| Cash remitted by business units: | ||
| UK life fund transfer | 279 | 261 |
| Asia | 148 | 86 |
| M&G | 86 | 75 |
| Total cash remitted to Group | 513 | 422 |
| Net interest paid | (80) | (76) |
| Dividends paid | (303) | (286) |
| Scrip dividends and share options | 134 | 119 |
| Cash remittances after interest and dividends | 264 | 179 |
| Tax received | 87 | 24 |
| Corporate activities | (86) | (30) |
| Cash flow before investment in businesses | 265 | 173 |
| Capital invested in business units: | ||
| Asia | (137) | (70) |
| UK | (42) | (69) |
| Total capital invested in business units | (179) | (139) |
| Increase in operating cash | 86 | 34 |
| Egg sale net proceeds | 0 | 527 |
| Total holding company cash flow | 86 | 561 |
The Group holding company received £513 million in cash remittances from business units in the first half of 2008 up from £422 million in 2007. This includes the shareholders' statutory life fund transfer of £279 million from the UK business.
After dividends and net interest paid, there was a net cash inflow of £ 264 million (HY 2007: £179 million). There was a high take-up of scrip dividends in the first half of 2008 and 2007.
Tax received of £87 million was £63 million higher than prior year, with the 2007 figure being exceptionally low as a result of foreign exchange gains, reducing the level of taxable losses. During the first half of 2008, the Group holding company paid £86 million in respect of corporate activities, including costs in respect of the process to consider a reattribution of the inherited estate.
In aggregate there is an improvement in operating cash inflow to £86 million from £34 million in the first half of 2007.
Depending on the mix of business written and the opportunities available, Prudential continues to expect that the UK shareholder-backed business will become cash positive in 2010.
We have previously indicated that the operating cash flow of the Group holding company is expected to be positive in 2008 and we are on target to meet this commitment.
