Fifteen out of the 43 non-life insurance companies in Nigeria have less than one per cent of the industry’s market. The 15 companies have remained under the radar and are relatively anonymous to the business community, raising concerns about their ability to shore up capital and take on more risk. The ranking is based on industry total gross premium income.
According to the 2016 annual report of non-life business posted on the website of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Leadway Assurance Company Limited leads the industry with 10.69 per cent market share of N201.10 billion industry gross premium income (GPI), followed by AIICO Plc with 8.10 per cent, while Custodian and Allied Insurance, holds 8.05 per cent. AXA Mansard Insurance has 7.09 per cent of the market share while NEM has 5.25 per cent.
Niger Insurance is leading the pack of firms with less than one per cent share, having 0.99 per cent market control despite its robust offshore affiliation. It is followed by Anchor Insurance Co., 0.97 per cent; FBN General Insurance, 0.97 per cent; Equity Assurance, 0.97 per cent; Goldlink Insurance, 0.95 per cent; KBL Insurance, 0.89 per cent; Nigerian Agric Insurance Corp, 0.88 per cent; Great Nigerian Insurance, 0.57 percent; Guinea Insurance, 0.45 per cent; Nicon Insurance, 0.45 percent; and Nigeria reinsurance Corp, 0.36 per cent.
READ ALSO: Standard Alliance Insurance appoints Omotayo Awodiya as new Managing Director
Others include FINSURANCE, 0.34 per cent; The Universal Insurance Corp, 0.28 percent; Alliance and General Insurance, 0.00 percent; Invest and Allied ASS, 0.00 per cent. Only 22 companies in Nigeria were able to register profits, according to data on the website of NAICOM, a development that prompted many stakeholders to call for another round of consolidation.
RANKING OF NON-LIFE INSURANCE COMPANIES WITH GROSS PREMIUM INCOME 2016
|
S/NO |
COMPANIES |
REGNO |
TOTAL GROSS PREMIUM |
MARKET SHARE (%) |
|
|
1 |
LEADWAY ASSURANCE CO LTD |
RIC021 |
21,539,968,000 |
10.69 |
|
|
2 |
CONTINENTAL RE INS PLC |
16,322,712,000 |
8.1 |
||
|
3 |
CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED INS CO LTD |
RIC028 |
16,222,090,000 |
8.05 |
|
|
4 |
AXA MANSARD INSURANCE PLC |
RIC041 |
14,293,717,000 |
7.09 |
|
|
5 |
NEM INSURANCE CO PLC |
RIC003 |
10,628,183,000 |
5.27 |
|
|
6 |
ROYAL EXCHANGE ASS NIG PLC |
RIC034 |
8,995,531,000 |
4.46 |
|
|
7 |
ZENITH GEN INS CO LTD |
RIC005 |
8,555,212,000 |
4.24 |
|
|
8 |
AIICO INSURANCE PLC |
RIC013 |
7,332,749,000 |
3.64 |
|
|
9 |
SOVEREIGN TRUST INS PLC |
RIC039 |
6,763,130,000 |
3.36 |
|
|
10 |
MUTUAL BENEFIT ASS PLC |
RIC018 |
6,660,746,000 |
3.3 |
|
|
11 |
STACO INSURANCE PLC |
RIC032 |
5,779,908,000 |
2.87 |
|
|
12 |
CORNERSTONE INSURANCE PLC |
RIC017 |
5,767,268,000 |
2.86 |
|
|
13 |
CONSOLIDATED HALLMARK INS PLC |
RIC016 |
5,708,277,062 |
2.83 |
|
|
14 |
WAPIC INSURANCE PLC |
RIC007 |
5,212,598,000 |
2.59 |
|
|
15 |
INTER ENERGY INSURANCE PLC |
RIC035 |
4,170,684,000 |
2.07 |
|
|
16 |
LINKAGE ASSURANCE PLC |
RIC046 |
3,960,407,000 |
1.96 |
|
|
17 |
LAW UNION AND ROCK INS PLC |
RIC008 |
3,958,462,148 |
1.96 |
|
|
18 |
NSIA INSURANCE (adic ins) |
RIC044 |
3,915,103,000 |
1.94 |
|
|
19 |
LASACO ASSURANCE PLC |
RIC047 |
3,516,692,000 |
1.74 |
|
|
20 |
OLD MUTUAL NIG GEN INS CO LTD |
RIC023 |
3,385,923,000 |
1.68 |
|
|
21 |
REGENCY INS CO LTD |
RIC019 |
3,337,313,000 |
1.66 |
|
|
22 |
ENSURE INSURANCE PLC |
3,006,546,000 |
1.49 |
||
|
23 |
STERLING ASSURANCE NIG LTD |
RIC022 |
2,733,429,000 |
1.36 |
|
|
24 |
PRESTIGE ASSURANCE PLC |
RIC026 |
2,547,530,000 |
1.26 |
|
|
25 |
STANDARD ALLIANCE INS PLC |
RIC011 |
2,503,967,000 |
1.24 |
|
|
26 |
UNITYKAPITAL ASSURANCE PLC |
RIC033 |
2,197,357,174 |
1.09 |
|
|
27 |
INDUSTRIAL & GEN INSURANCE PLC |
RIC049 |
2,170,645,000 |
1.08 |
|
|
28 |
SAHAM UNITRUST INS CO LTD |
RIC036 |
2,083,158,000 |
1.03 |
|
|
29 |
NIGER INSURANCe PLC |
1,991,308,000 |
0.99 |
||
|
30 |
ANCHOR INS CO LTD |
RIC010 |
1,960,782,000 |
0.97 |
|
|
31 |
FBN GEMERAL INSURANCE LTD |
RIC024 |
1,957,668,000 |
0.97 |
|
|
32 |
EQUITY ASSURANCE PLC |
RIC027 |
1,956,775,000 |
0.97 |
|
|
33 |
GOLDLINK INSURANCE CO LTD |
RIC030 |
1,912,635,000 |
0.95 |
|
|
34 |
KBL INSURANCE LIMITED |
RIC037 |
1,795,908,000 |
0.89 |
|
|
35 |
NIG AGRIC INS CORPORATION |
RIC020 |
1,765,702,000 |
0.88 |
|
|
36 |
GREAT NIG INSCO LTD |
RIC014 |
1,152,851,000 |
0.57 |
|
|
37 |
GUINEA INSURANCE PLC |
RIC004 |
906,692,000 |
0.45 |
|
|
38 |
NICON INSURANCE PLC |
RIC001 |
899,998,000 |
0.45 |
|
|
39 |
NIGERIA REINSURANCE CORP |
716,606,000 |
0.36 |
||
|
40 |
FINSURANCE PLC |
RIC048 |
687,610,000 |
0.34 |
|
|
41 |
THE UNIVERSAL INS CO LTD |
RIC029 |
573,838,000 |
0.28 |
|
|
42 |
ALLIANCE & GEN INS PLC |
RIC025 |
0 |
0 |
|
|
43 |
INVEST AND ALLIED ASS PLC |
RIC038 |
0 |
0 |
|
|
TOTAL |
201,547,678,384 |
||||
Source: NAICOM
This is because there too many insurers with a weak capital base that prevents them from taking on more risk and taking advantage of the opportunities in the Nigerian economy. The top three banks have shareholders fund of N1.98 billion while the total equity of the top three insurers stood at N56.92 billion as at September 2017. Indeed Nigeria’s market is fragmented and in its embryonic as premium penetration is low.
Out of Nigeria’s estimated population of two hundred million populations, and ninety million adults, only two million people have one form cover or the other. This explains why the sector’s contribution to GDP is less than 1 per cent, lagging sub-Saharan countries like Kenya and South Africa Experts have attributed the poor contribution of the sector to the economy to apathy toward insurance, lack of proper regulation and weak consumer spending.
The last time capital bases of companies were raised was in 2007 as an economic downturn and rising operating expenses have eroded profitability. The cumulative shareholder’s fund of the 43 firms stood at N306.90 billion, which is lower than the N767.69 billion of Tier one lender, Zenith Bank.
BALA AUGIE
