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Chairman's Statement

I am privileged to have joined Old Mutual plc as its new Chairman at a pivotal point in its long history. You can rest assured that I and my fellow Board members are focused on delivering enhanced value to all our shareholders and buildingstrong relationships of trust with our key stakeholders.

Overview of 2009

Following the turmoil in global financial markets in 2008, 2009 was a difficult year for financial services companies, reflecting the recessionary environment that prevailed in many of the world's major economies. Despite this, the Company achieved adjusted operating earnings per share on an IFRS basis of 12.1p, which compared to 14.9p in the prior year. I believe this was a very acceptable result in these difficult circumstances. While there are noncash charges (such as that arising on the revaluation of our own debt) which gave rise to a reported net loss, overall the Company has improved its financial strength and increased its IFRS book value (from 134p per share to 147p per share).

Board

Chris Collins retired as Chairman at the end of 2009, having served on the Board since the original listing of the Company in 1999. We are very grateful to him for his contribution and wish him a happy and fulfilling retirement.

Mike Arnold joined the Board as an independent non-executive director in September and also immediately became a member of our Group Audit and Risk Committee. His actuarial expertise is a valuable addition to the Board's skills, following his role as Chairman of the International Association of Consulting Actuaries and Principal/Consulting Actuary and Head of Life practice at Milliman. From April 2010, we are splitting the Group Audit and Risk Committee into separate Audit and Risk Committees, in line with recommendations contained in the Walker Review, and Mike has kindly agreed to take on the Chairmanship of the newly established Risk Committee. We expect this new committee will play an important role in ensuring that risk matters continue to be appropriately addressed at Board level.

The Board conducted a self-assessment exercise during 2009 in conjunction with external facilitators and one of my first tasks will be to ensure that the findings from this are implemented. There are also other increasingly onerous expectations of boards of banks and other financial institutions that I will address during the coming year. On behalf of my Board colleagues, I would like to express our appreciation for all the dedication of the Group's employees during 2009 and for the resilience and commitment they showed during one of the most difficult years in the Group's history.

Dividend

We are pleased that the Company's improved capital position has enabled the Board to recommend a dividend for the year ended 31 December 2009 of 1.5p per share (or its equivalent in other applicable currencies) to be paid on 25 June 2010, subject to approval by shareholders at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in May. The Board is pleased that we have been able to resume payment of a dividend and that we can now begin again to reward our many shareholders who have remained loyal to the Company during this difficult period.

AGM 2010

This year's AGM will be held at our offices in London on Thursday, 13 May 2010. In response to requests from some of our South African shareholders, we are also arranging this year for the AGM to be webcast. There is also an opportunity for shareholders, if they wish, to submit questions ahead of that meeting, which will be dealt with during the AGM. The Notice relating to our AGM enclosed with this Report includes further details of the webcast arrangements, and the various resolutions to be proposed and the procedure for submitting questions ahead of the Meeting.

Future

Following a year of de-risking the balance sheet, the Board and management are aligned in the goal of simplifying the Group structure and improving performance. Our international savings business is critical to achieving long-term growth and will be a special focus as we progress with implementing our strategy.

Patrick O'Sullivan
Chairman
11 March 2010