Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft

What Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft does

Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft (VVW) is a German specialist B2B publishing house founded in 1946, with reported headquarters in Cologne (Köln) and a presence in Karlsruhe. The company serves the DACH insurance industry, producing professional content for insurance practitioners, in-house counsel, claims handlers, actuaries, regulators, and academic researchers in the German-speaking markets. The publishing programme is anchored by two long-running journals — Versicherungswirtschaft (insurance economics and management) and Versicherungsrecht (insurance law) — complemented by a daily news brief, VWheute Tagesreport, that has reached a stated subscriber base above 12,000 readers.

The product set combines traditional specialist-publisher assets — flagship journals, a book programme, and the daily newsletter — with newer digital and live formats, including certified online learning modules distributed through the OWLit platform and a recurring professional talk-and-community series called VersicherungswirtschaftCLUB. VVW is structured as a 50/50 joint venture between VVW GmbH and Verlag Dr. Otto Schmidt, embedding the publisher inside a wider legal-and-insurance publishing group and providing cross-sell access to legal content. The business employs between 11 and 50 staff.

VVW earns revenue primarily through institutional and individual subscriptions to its journals and newsletter, supplemented by one-time book sales, paid access to digital learning modules, and any ancillary revenue tied to the CLUB event format. No advertising-led or platform-marketplace model is disclosed; no AI capabilities, funding rounds, M&A activity, or geographic expansion beyond DACH are referenced in the available material.

Name

Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft

Legal name

Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft GmbH & Co.KG

Website

https://vvw.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1946

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft is a German specialist B2B publisher founded in 1946, producing insurance journals, books, newsletters, online learning, and live events for DACH insurance professionals via subscriptions and book sales.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Insurance Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Book Publishers (51313)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

Keywords

• Insurance industry publishing
• Professional insurance media
• Insurance law journals
• Specialty book publishing
• Insurance training modules

Headquarters

HQ city

Karlsruhe

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Publications Subscriptions: Subscription revenue from VWheute daily report (12,000+ subscribers), journal subscriptions (Versicherungsrecht and Versicherungswirtschaft), providing daily/periodic industry news and expert analysis to insurance professionals
2. Book Sales: Sales of basic and standard works for personal professional development in profession, studies, and science through Otto Schmidt online shop
3. Online Learning Modules: Enterprise-wide digital learning solutions with company-specific module packages for insurance and insurance law topics, from basic to expert level

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft is a specialized German publishing house that produces and distributes insurance industry content, including professional journals (Versicherungswirtschaft, Versicherungsrecht), daily news reports (VWheute Tagesreport), specialty books, the BWV-Reihe book series, online training modules, and the VersicherungswirtschaftCLUB membership offering. The portfolio targets insurance professionals, legal practitioners, brokers, and corporate insurance buyers across the DACH region.

Product overview

Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft operates as a specialist publishing house and media services provider for the insurance industry. The portfolio consists of a core set of professional publications combined with digital products and educational offerings. The flagship products include two founding specialist journals (Versicherungswirtschaft and Versicherungsrecht), the VWheute Tagesreport daily news service, and a book program of foundational and standard works. These are complemented by online learning modules and the VersicherungswirtschaftCLUB talk format. The company was founded in 1946 and has evolved through several structural changes, now operating as Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft GmbH & Co.KG in partnership with Verlag Dr. Otto Schmidt in Köln.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• VersicherungswirtschaftCLUB: Talk format featuring discussions with industry experts on insurance topics
• VWheute Tagesreport
• Versicherungswirtschaft (magazine)
• Versicherungsrecht (magazine)

Products and services

• VWheute Tagesreport

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 12,000 subscribers to VWheute Tagesreport among insurance industry decision-makers

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• VVW GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVVW GmbH holds 50% ownership of Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft GmbH & Co.KG. The company was renamed from Versicherungswirtschaft GmbH to VVW GmbH in 2016. In 1998, VVW GmbH was created to take over all publishing operations, and in 2021 the publishing division was spun off into the current joint venture structure.
• Verlag Dr. Otto Schmidt in KölncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVerlag Dr. Otto Schmidt in Köln holds 50% ownership of Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft GmbH & Co.KG. In 2021, the publishing division was spun off in close cooperation with Verlag Dr. Otto Schmidt into a new company. Otto Schmidt serves as the main distribution partner for books and publications through their online shop.
• Verein Versicherungswirtschaft e.V.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounded in 1957 by the publishers of Versicherungswirtschaft journal as the ideal sponsor of the publishing house. The association represents the interests of the insurance industry and maintains the company's connection to the professional community.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Süddeutsche Zeitung: Germany's largest broadsheet newspaper with substantial business and financial coverage including insurance. Comparable as a German publisher with subscription-based recurring revenue and a multimedia product strategy, though general-interest rather than insurance-specialist.
• Springer Nature: Major German-founded academic and professional publisher with deep portfolios in business, law, and social sciences. Comparable as a large-scale publisher with digital subscription and learning products serving professional audiences, though at vastly larger scale and broader scope.
• Handelsblatt Media Group: Germany's leading business newspaper with strong coverage of the insurance and financial services industry. Competes indirectly for advertising and reader attention from German insurance executives who overlap with VWheute's audience.
• C.H.Beck: Major German legal and tax publisher with extensive online commentary and subscription products (beck-online). Comparable as a German professional publisher monetizing legal expertise through journals, books, and digital platforms.
• Wolters Kluwer Deutschland: Global legal, regulatory, and tax information provider with a significant German presence (formerly Carl Heymanns Verlag). Comparable as a professional information publisher serving compliance and continuing education needs in regulated industries adjacent to insurance.
• Deutscher Fachverlag (dfv): Large German B2B trade publishing group operating across multiple verticals including insurance. Much larger scale and broader portfolio make it a relevant comparator for B2B trade media monetization, though not insurance-specialist.

Direct peers

• Verlag Dr. Otto Schmidt: Cologne-based legal publisher and 50/50 joint venture partner of Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft since 2021. Operates a similar professional publishing and online learning model (including the OWLit platform used by VVW), with adjacent coverage in tax, business, and insurance law.
• Versicherungsbote: Digital-first German insurance industry news portal targeting the same insurance professional audience as VWheute. Competes directly for advertising, readership, and industry mindshare among German Assekuranz decision-makers.
• procontra: Long-running German insurance trade magazine and online portal covering the same Assekuranz industry with news, analysis, and opinion pieces. Directly competes with Versicherungswirtschaft magazine for insurer readers and advertising budgets.
• VersicherungsJournal: German online insurance industry news publication serving insurance professionals with daily news and analysis. Competes with VWheute Tagesreport for daily readership and digital advertising.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/VVW_Karlsruhe
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/vwheute
• Facebookfacebook.com/vvw.de

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Verlag Versicherungswirtschaft