Dynamic Financial Analysis (‘DFA’) is a systematic approach based on large-scale computer simulations for the integrated financial modeling of nonlife insurance and
reinsurance companies aimed at assessing the risks and the benefits associated with strategic decisions. The most important characteristic of DFA is that it takes an integrated, holistic point of view, contrary to classic financial or actuarial analysis in which different aspects of one company were considered in isolation from each other. Specifically, DFA models the reactions of the company in response to a large number of interrelated risk factors including both underwriting risks – usually from several different lines of business, as well as asset risks. In order to account for the long time horizons that are typical in insurance and
reinsurance, DFA allows dynamic projections to be made for several time periods into the
future, where one time period is usually one year, sometimes also one quarter. DFA models normally reflect the full financil structure of the modeled company, including the impact of accounting and tax structures. Thus, DFA allows projections to be made for the balance sheet and for the profit-andloss account (‘P&L’) of the company. Technically, DFA is a platform using various models and techniques from finance and actuarial science by integrating them into one multivariate dynamic
simulation model. Given the complexity and the long time horizons of such a model, it is not anymore possible to make analytical evaluations. Therefore, DFA is based on stochastic
simulation (also called Monte Carlo imulation), where large numbers of random scenarios are generated, the reaction of the company on each one of the scenarios is evaluated, and the resulting outcomes are then analyzed statistically. The section ‘The Elements of DFA’ gives an in-depth description of the different elements required for a DFA. [Autoren: Peter Blum, Michael Dacorogna; reproduced from the Encyclopedia of Actuarial Science. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 2004.]