Medibank profit jumps despite cyber attack costs

The news: Australia’s biggest health insurer Medibank has posted a strong lift in annual profit despite a costly cyber attack.

The numbers: Net profit for the year to 30 June rose 30% to $511.1 million, helped by an increase in customer sign-ups. Total revenue was up 3.2% to $7.36 billion as health insurance premium revenue rose 4.2% to $7.15 billion. The company will pay a dividend of 8.3 cents a share, up from 7.3 cents a year ago.

The context: The health insurer on Thursday revealed that last year’s cyber attack, in which sensitive information of nearly 10 million Australians was stolen, cost the company $46.4 million in non-recurring costs. It will incur another $30 to $35 million on ongoing IT security upgrades and other related legal costs in the 2024 financial year.