Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company’s (ADNIC) GWP rose by 10.1% y-o-y to AED2.91bn ($792.4m) in 2018, driven by growth across its core lines of business. It also achieved 22.8% growth in net technical profit to AED145.4m due to strong margins in key portfolios and 3.7% rise in net profit to AED235.6m.
In its full year 2018 results announcement, ADNIC said it further diversified its portfolio by adding new product lines and expanding its international business, which now does business in over 90 countries across the Middle East, Africa, the Far East, Latin America and Europe. ADNIC further entered into a number of strategic partnerships which gave the company new routes to market.
As a result of these initiatives, ADNIC saw strong profitable growth, with its consumer lines business showing particularly robust growth and representing 49.6% of the total portfolio.
The year was challenging as volatility affected parts of the local and overseas financial markets and impacted ADNIC’s investment result. The impact was partly offset by significantly higher interest and dividend income. Total investment income through P&L was AED95.6m in 2018.
Mr Ahmad Idris, CEO of ADNIC said, “2018 marked another successful year for ADNIC, characterised by strong revenue growth, high net profit and sharp underwriting discipline, with our performance standing as testament to our innovative and customer-centric service offering. Through this year-on-year growth we maintained our position as one of the region’s leading insurers, delivering against key financial, regulatory and customer service metrics.
“In 2019, with the sector well placed for growth, innovation and technological advancement will be key differentiations. ADNIC will continue to develop as a business and seize new opportunities by investing in market leading technologies that both bring us closer to our customers while accelerating the pace of innovation in the wider sector.”
Market outlook
ADNIC expects market conditions, notwithstanding an improving economy, to remain challenging, with no significant diminution of the level of competition. “The global reinsurance market is showing some signs of improvement, but pricing internationally, and therefore locally, will remain under pressure. That said, economic growth will present insurers like ADNIC, with a strong market position and customer proposition, with opportunities for further sustainable profitable growth. ADNIC also expects the market to see accelerating use of new technology to drive efficiency and further improve customer experience,” the statement said.
The insurer said its investment strategy will continue to focus on maintaining a diversified and liquid investment portfolio. The ability of the region’s capital markets to attract foreign investments will lead to greater fund inflows, and the success of government initiatives to diversify their economies will lead to continued economic progress and create more levers of growth going forward. M
AED1 = $0.27