General underwriter, Royal Exchange General Insurance Company Limited (REGIC) is tightening discussion that will birth its second strategic investor and make the Company a major player in the industry.

The expected investment will make the company bigger and increase its capacity to underwrite big ticket risks in manufacturing business.

German-owned InsuResillience Investment Fund had acquired a 39.25 percent equity stake in Royal Exchange General Insurance Limited in 2019, attracting N3.6 billion capital injection into the insurer.

Rabiu Gwarzo, chairman of the Company made the disclosure at its hybrid 13th Annual General Meeting held in Lagos.

He said “our company is therefore well positioned to play big in key market segments”.

Meanwhile, during the 2020 financial year, REGIC recorded a 12 percent increase in gross premium to N11.87 billion, from N10.58 billion in 2019.

Gwarzo noted that the Company the company made underwriting profit of N1.45 billion in 2020 as against N1.15 billion achieved in 2019, with net claims reducing to N689.53 million in 2020 from a figure of N1.11 billion in 2019.

He said the firm made an investment income of N582 million in 2020, while its Profit Before Tax (PBT) grew to N1.02 billion, from N975 million achieved in 2019 and the Profit After Tax (PAT) increased to 794 million as against N655 million recorded in 2019.

With a strong financial base, implementing cutting –edge technology solutions and a well –articulated and clearly defined business strategies to drive growth across its major lines of business will be the key to success in the years ahead, Gwarzo said.

According to him, the capacity of the Company to underwrite and retain more risks profitably has greatly improved.

“We will remain focused on building a team that will achieve our vision to be a reliable and trusted industry leader in Nigeria, providing innovative insurance products and services to our esteemed customers. We will also continue to invest in research and technology to lead the industry in its quest for digital transformation”.

Benjamin Agili, managing director/CEO in his remark said the Company will continue to drive premium growth and profitably with the launch of key strategic initiatives aimed at growing the retail and direct sales portfolio.

“The implementation of our 5-year strategic plans has commenced and is going on well, our focus of developing our people, ensuing operational efficiency through our on-going digital transformation initiatives are still on course, Agili said.

SOURCE: https://businessday.ng/companies/article/royal-exchange-general-tightens-discussion-for-second-strategic-investor/