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Chuks Udo Okonta
Having recorded N14.13 billion Gross Premium Written (GPW) in year 2021, Coronation Insurance Plc, has assured shareholders of robust profits in years ahead.
Its Chairman, Mutiu Sunmonu, said this today at the firm’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos, adding that the company would also continue to attract quality talents and ensure good governance which engenders profitability.
He informed the shareholders of the strides the firm has made and would continue to make in the deployment of technology, which is now the major driver of business growth.
The Chairman noted that the firm’s net underwriting income was N9.66 billion, adding that N7.31 billion was paid as claims.
Sunmonu submitted that the firm also recorded a total underwriting profit of N1.25 billion, while the investment income stood at N1.51 billion.
He said the firm’s total assets stood at N39.80 billion, adding that a share capital of N11.99 billion; share premium of N4.61 billion; contingency reserves, N3.66 billion; other reserves, N1.75 billion and total equity, N21.59 billion were recorded in the year.
The Managing Director Olamide Olajolo, said although there was a decline in the company’s GWP and GPI when compared against the prior year figures, the company fared better in the year under review as the difference between the GWP and GPI for the 2020 financial year is more than the difference in the figures for the 2021 financial year.
He submitted that the decline was attributed to the company’s decision to not underwrite some high-risk accounts which required huge reinsurance expenses and have high loss ratios.
He told the shareholders that the company has since secured more profitable accounts to improve its financial performance.
“As part of the efforts to increase the GWP and GPI, the Company has identified and commenced strategic partnerships such as the bancassurance partnership with Access Bank Plc which accounts for 27 per cent of the GWP for the 2021 Financial Year,” he posited.
He maintained that the decline in the fees and commissions earned in the year under review was a consequence of the firm’s decision not to underwrite the earlier referenced high-risk accounts.
Olajolo said the company has increased its collaboration on more profitable accounts in order to increase its fees and commissions.
On reinsurance and claims expenses, he said the firm in 2021, was presented with a lot of #EndSars claims which were within its retention limit and contractually bound to pay.
“Consequently, the company had to review its Outstanding Claims Reserves (OCR) by almost a billion. We however want to assure our Shareholders that steps have been taken to protect the company from further losses of this magnitude.
“The retention limits on various classes of policies have been reviewed. Also, we have developed further capacity within our reinsurance team to better improve on our reinsurance arrangements. These efforts have yielded positive results so far,” he submitted.
He noted that in spite the outcome of the financial result in the year under review, the shareholders should be assured that the board and management are making concerted efforts to diversify the firm’s income, stressing that aside the bancassurance partnership, the company had developed five poducts, three of which have been approved by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM).
“We are committed to increasing the company’s market share and overall profitability by capitalising on various digital platforms to drive sales of our products as well as embarking on profitable investments,” he assured.
He said the increase in management expenses for the year under review was as a result of the costs incurred to ensure that the company provides a safe working environment following the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that although, inflation had really affected the company’s costs, the company has adopted a lot of cost rationalisation initiates from which it expects to see appreciable savings.
The Managing Director posited that the firm strives to ensure gender balance across every cadre. “We assure our Shareholders that we are doing our best to ensure gender balance at the top management level,” he added.
He stated that to enable shareholders’ have access to information on unclaimed dividends, there is a link on the Company’s website where shareholders can view the list of unclaimed dividends. “We enjoin all our Shareholders to visit the website to confirm the status of their unclaimed dividends,” he said.
Speaking on the regulatory environment, he said NAICOM has been supportive in the industry’s drive to deepen insurance penetration by providing the platform for web aggregators and micro insurers, stressing that NAICOM has also encouraged the use of digital platforms for the sale of insurance.
He maintained that the company has taken advantage of this by entering strategic partnerships with various web aggregators and developing in-house platforms to ensure a seamless customer journey.
We are optimistic that these initiatives will further improve the Company’s profitability, he said.
