The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), insurance industry regulator, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by enabling laws, has issued regulatory orders on Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) plc and UnityKapital Assurance plc.
The orders, conveyed in separate letters dated July 30 and 31, 2015, were signed by Mohammed Kari, the deputy commissioner (technical).
The Commission directs IGI to appoint an auditing firm from among KPMG, PWC and Delloitte to conduct a comprehensive financial review of the company and submit the report to the Commission within two weeks of the date of the regulatory order.
The firm will undertake a comprehensive review of IGI’s accounting system, conduct capital verification and validate the financial position of the company as of July 31, 2015.
The management is ordered not to incur any expenditure in excess of N250,000, and not carry out new investments or dispose any of its assets without the prior approval of NAICOM. IGI will submit monthly report on its activities to NAICOM, effective August 2015.
The board of UnityKapital is restricted from holding any meeting or taking any further decisions in respect of the affairs of the company during the subsistence of the regulatory order.
While the executive management is directed to run the affairs of the company, all issues that may require approval of the board shall be referred to the Commission for consideration for approval.
The management is restricted from incurring any expenditure on a single transaction in excess of N250,000 without prior approval of the Commission, and shall also not incur any capital expenditure within the subsistence of this regulatory order without the approval of the Commission.
The order forbids UnityKapital divesting any of its existing investment without written approval of the Commission. All proceeds of divestment that have commenced prior to the order shall be paid into a dedicated account as approved by the Commission.
Both Regulatory orders are with effect from August 3, 2015, and for initial periods of six months in the case of IGI and 90 days for UnityKapital.
The Regulatory orders may be extended to such a period when the Commission is satisfied that there is no potential risk to policyholders of each of the companies.
