FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE     CONTACT:    Karen A. Horvath

Vice President - External

Financial Communications

(203) 629-3000

Greenwich, CT, July 21, 2025 - W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE: WRB) today reported its second quarter 2025 results.

(1)Operating income is a non-GAAP financial measure defined by the Company as net income excluding after-tax net investment gains (losses) and related expenses and after-tax net foreign currency gains (losses). Commencing with this quarter, the Company’s 2024 financial information has been restated to exclude after-tax net foreign currency gains (losses) from operating income to conform with this presentation.

(2)Return on equity and operating return on equity represent net income and operating income, respectively, expressed on an annualized basis as a percentage of beginning of year common stockholders’ equity.

Second quarter highlights included:

•Return on equity of 19.1% and operating return on equity of 20.0%.

•Record net premiums written grew to $3.4 billion.

•The current accident year combined ratio before catastrophe losses of 3.2 loss ratio points was 88.4%.

•The reported combined ratio was 91.6%, including current accident year catastrophe losses of $99.2 million.

•Average rate increases excluding workers' compensation were approximately 7.6%.

•Record net investment income of $379.3 million.

•Book value per share grew 6.8% in the quarter, before dividends.

•Total capital returned to shareholders was $223.8 million, consisting of $189.7 million of special dividends and $34.1 million of ordinary dividends.

•Record common stockholders' equity of $9.3 billion.

The Company commented:

Our strong performance continued into the second quarter of 2025, with an annualized return on beginning-of-year common stockholders' equity of 19.1%. Net income grew year-over-year, driven by higher underwriting gains and improved investment income, notwithstanding above-average industry catastrophe losses during the quarter. Book value per share grew 6.8%, before $223.8 million of capital returned to shareholders through special and ordinary dividends.

Our focus on business with the highest margin potential resulted in record quarterly net premiums written of $3.4 billion. Net investment income rose both year-over-year and sequentially to a quarterly record, fueled by higher yields on our expanding domestic fixed-maturity portfolio. The strength of our operating cash flow continues to drive growth in net investable assets, and our current new money rates remain comfortably above our average book yield, positioning us well for further investment income growth.

We continue to carefully manage the underwriting cycle in each market served by our specialized businesses. This disciplined approach has supported superior long-term, risk-adjusted returns and consistently lower volatility over decades. We remain confident in our ability to deliver exceptional value to shareholders throughout the remainder of 2025 and well into the future.

Webcast Conference Call

    The Company will hold its quarterly conference call with analysts and investors to discuss its earnings and other information on July 21, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. eastern time. The conference call will be webcast live on the Company's website at https://ir.berkley.com/events-and-presentations/default.aspx. Please log on early to register. A replay of the webcast will be available on the Company's website approximately two hours after the end of the conference call. Additional financial information can be found on the Company's website at https://ir.berkley.com/investor-relations/financial-information/quarterly-results/default.aspx.

About W. R. Berkley Corporation

    Founded in 1967, W. R. Berkley Corporation is an insurance holding company that is among the largest commercial lines writers in the United States and operates worldwide in two segments of the property casualty business: Insurance and Reinsurance & Monoline Excess.

Forward Looking Information

This is a “Safe Harbor” Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any forward-looking statements contained herein, including statements related to our outlook for the industry and for our performance for the year 2025 and beyond, are based upon the Company’s historical performance and on current plans, estimates and expectations. The inclusion of this forward-looking information should not be regarded as a representation by us or any other person that the future plans, estimates or expectations contemplated by us will be achieved. They are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to: the cyclical nature of the property casualty industry; the impact of significant competition, including new entrants to the industry; the long-tail and potentially volatile nature of the insurance and reinsurance business; product demand and pricing; claims development and the process of estimating reserves; investment risks, including those of our portfolio of fixed maturity securities and investments in equity securities, including investments in financial institutions, foreign governmental bonds, municipal bonds, mortgage-backed securities, loans receivable, investment funds, including real estate, merger arbitrage, energy-related and private equity investments; the effects of emerging claim and coverage issues; the uncertain nature of damage theories and loss amounts, including claims for cybersecurity-related risks; natural and man-made catastrophic losses, including as a result of terrorist activities; the impact of climate change, which may alter the frequency and increase the severity of catastrophe events; general economic and market activities, including inflation, the risk of recession, changing interest rates, the impact of tariffs and volatility in the credit and capital markets; the impact of the conditions in the financial markets and the global economy, and the potential effect of legislative, regulatory, accounting or other initiatives taken in response, on our results and financial condition; cyber security breaches of our information technology systems and the information technology systems of our vendors and other third parties; the use of artificial intelligence technologies by us or third-parties on which we rely could expose us to technological, security, legal, and other risks; the risk of future pandemics, as well as continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic; foreign currency and political risks relating to our international operations; our ability to attract and retain key personnel and qualified employees; continued availability of capital and financing; the success of our new ventures or acquisitions and the availability of other opportunities; the availability of reinsurance; our retention under the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2019; the ability or willingness of our reinsurers to pay reinsurance recoverables owed to us; other legislative and regulatory developments, including those related to business practices in the insurance industry; credit risk related to our policyholders, independent agents and brokers; changes in the ratings assigned to us or our insurance company subsidiaries by rating agencies; the availability of dividends from our insurance company subsidiaries; the effectiveness of our controls to ensure compliance with guidelines, policies and legal and regulatory standards; and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These risks and uncertainties could cause our actual results for the year 2025 and beyond to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statement we make. Any projections of growth in our revenues would not necessarily result in commensurate levels of earnings. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

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(1)Basic shares outstanding consist of the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period (including shares held in a grantor trust). Diluted shares outstanding consist of the weighted average number of basic and common equivalent shares outstanding during the period.

(Amounts in thousands, except ratios) (1)

						Second Quarter												Six Months
						2025						2024						2025						2024
			Insurance:
			Gross premiums written			$	3,606,887					$	3,360,850					$	6,823,840					$	6,281,900
			Net premiums written			3,013,703						2,810,448						5,708,158						5,256,163
			Net premiums earned			2,728,784						2,484,569						5,371,291						4,883,338
			Pre-tax income			512,672						490,053						1,022,177						968,202
			Loss ratio			63.8		%				64.0		%				63.9		%				62.9		%
			Expense ratio			28.3		%				28.4		%				28.0		%				28.4		%
			GAAP Combined ratio			92.1		%				92.4		%				91.9		%				91.3		%
			Reinsurance & Monoline Excess:
			Gross premiums written			$	370,882					$	356,922					$	837,868					$	798,628
			Net premiums written			337,736						316,331						776,584						721,907
			Net premiums earned			369,401						361,846						739,275						727,424
			Pre-tax income			127,299						124,449						247,679						252,074
			Loss ratio			57.7		%				52.8		%				57.7		%				51.3		%
			Expense ratio			29.7		%				29.0		%				28.7		%				29.4		%
			GAAP Combined ratio			87.4		%				81.8		%				86.4		%				80.7		%
			Corporate and Eliminations:
			Net investment gains (losses)			$	30,973					$	(58,512)					$	47,328					$	(32,733)
			Interest expense			(31,777)						(31,708)						(63,504)						(63,436)
			Other expenses			(117,304)						(36,609)						(193,211)						(62,363)
			Pre-tax loss			(118,108)						(126,829)						(209,387)						(158,532)
			Consolidated:
			Gross premiums written			$	3,977,769					$	3,717,772					$	7,661,708					$	7,080,528
			Net premiums written			3,351,439						3,126,779						6,484,742						5,978,070
			Net premiums earned			3,098,185						2,846,415						6,110,566						5,610,762
			Pre-tax income			521,863						487,673						1,060,469						1,061,744
			Loss ratio			63.1		%				62.6		%				63.1		%				61.4		%
			Expense ratio			28.5		%				28.5		%				28.2		%				28.6		%
			GAAP Combined ratio			91.6		%				91.1		%				91.3		%				90.0		%

(1)Loss ratio is losses and loss expenses incurred expressed as a percentage of premiums earned. Expense ratio is underwriting expenses expressed as a percentage of premiums earned. GAAP combined ratio is the sum of the loss ratio and the expense ratio.

(Amounts in thousands)

(1)Short-tail lines include commercial multi-peril (non-liability), inland marine, accident and health, fidelity and surety, boiler and machinery, high net worth homeowners and other lines.

(2)Includes reinsurance casualty and property and certain program management business.

(3)Core portfolio includes fixed maturity securities, equity securities, cash and cash equivalents, real estate and loans receivable.

(4)Operating income is a non-GAAP financial measure defined by the Company as net income excluding after-tax net investment gains (losses) and after-tax net foreign currency gains (losses). Net investment gains (losses) are computed net of related expenses, including performance-based compensatory costs associated with realized investment gains. Commencing with this quarter, the Company’s 2024 financial information has been restated to exclude after-tax net foreign currency gains (losses) from operating income to conform with this presentation. Management believes this measurement provides a useful indicator of trends in the Company’s underlying operations.

(1)Net invested assets include investments, cash and cash equivalents, trading accounts receivable from brokers and clearing organizations, trading account securities sold but not yet purchased and unsettled purchases.

(2)As of June 30, 2025, reflected in common stockholders' equity are after-tax unrealized investment losses of $249 million and unrealized currency translation losses of $324 million. As of December 31, 2024, reflected in common stockholders' equity are after-tax unrealized investment losses of $517 million and unrealized currency translation losses of $417 million.

(3)During the six months ended June 30, 2025, the Company repurchased 850,000 shares of its common stock for $49.2 million. During the three months ended June 30, 2025, the Company did not repurchase any shares of its common stock. The number of shares of common stock outstanding excludes shares held in a grantor trust.

(4)Book value per share is total common stockholders’ equity divided by the number of common shares outstanding. Tangible book value per share is total common stockholders’ equity excluding the after-tax value of goodwill and other intangible assets divided by the number of common shares outstanding.

(Amounts in thousands, except percentages)

(1)Total fixed maturity securities had an average rating of AA- and an average duration of 2.8 years, including cash and cash equivalents.

(2)Cash and cash equivalents includes trading accounts receivable from brokers and clearing organizations, trading account securities sold but not yet purchased and unsettled purchases.