The countries of the MENA region are still facing two of the world’s most pressing economic and geopolitical issues: the slump in oil prices and the intensification of conflicts, said the IMF in its latest regional assessment “Regional Economic Outlook for the Middle East and Central Asia”. It projects that growth for the region this year will be a modest 3.5%, with little improvement expected in 2017.
GCC governments are reviewing existing models of both public and international pension funds to ensure they are sustainable, said EY’s GCC Wealth and Asset Management 2015 released recently. There could be significant changes in the way GCC pension provisions are looked at in the coming years because it may be difficult for the current system to cope with the needs of GCC residents.
An umbrella system to accommodate social insurance for Gulf citizens working in any of the GCC countries will encourage the mobility of manpower among the six different states of the regional grouping, and realise economic and social stability.
Medical insurance witnessed the fastest growth among the various branches of insurance in Bahrain last year, growing by almost 11% in gross premiums/contributions to BHD53.39 million (US$185 million) in 2015 compared to BHD47.89 million in 2014, according to the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB). Medical insurance represented around 20% of the total premiums written in the Bahraini market last year.
Arig has announced consolidated net profits of US$3.4 million for the first nine months of 2016, compared to $1.4 million in the same period last year. The result includes a loss of $3.5 million due to Forex movements against the US Dollar. Despite challenging conditions for reinsurers, the company managed to achieve 7% growth in its revenues over the most recent three quarters, writing $227.5 million in gross premiums over the period.
The Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) will launch a training course in insurance for commercial court judges as the first phase of its programme to provide training to the judiciary in financial services
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The combined profits of the 24 insurance companies operating in Jordan grew by 28.9% to JOD21.4 million (US$30.2 million) for the first six months of 2016, according to data from the Jordan Insurance Federation
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Kuwait’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry has rejected a proposal to establish a separate body to supervise the insurance industry, in adherence to the government’s belt-tightening drive. The government is rationalising the public sector in the wake of the oil price decline.
The DHAMAN project, which is Kuwait’s health insurance scheme for foreigners working in the private sector, will be carried out in two phases, the CEO of Health Insurance Hospitals Company, Dr Ahmad Al-Saleh, has said.
Health insurance cover will be made compulsory for all private-sector workers in Oman by 2018, the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI) has told employers.
Vehicle insurance policies accounted for OMR162.3 million (US$421.6 million) in direct premiums or 36.7% of the total written premiums in Oman last year, according to a report released last month by the National Centre for Statistical Information (NCSI).
The Qatar Central Bank (QCB) is in the process of regulating intermediaries in the insurance sector, with the work expected to be completed by the end of this year.
Saudi central bank SAMA has changed its name from the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency to the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority, it said in a statement.
The rate of return on non-life premiums in Turkey stood at 0.8% for the first six months of this year, compared to a negative rate of 1.9% in 2015, according to data published by the Turkey Insurance Association.
Geopolitical turmoil and macroeconomic factors have triggered a downgrade in short-term prospects for the “frontier” insurance market of Turkey, said a report titled “Emerging Markets Matter”, by EY and Oxford Economics.
The UAE Insurance Authority (IA) has started coordinating the establishment of an insurance pool to be formed by local insurers to provide insurance coverage to nuclear energy projects in the country.
Oman Insurance Company (OIC) has brought together a forum of experts to discuss with its key property clients the causes of some recent fire incidents, as part of its risk management initiative.
Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company (ADNIC) has reported a net profit of AED143.5 million (US$39.1 million) for the nine months ending 30 September, compared to a net loss of AED331 million for the same period in 2015.
Union Insurance Company has reported a 34.8% increase in gross premiums to AED659 million (US$179.4 million) for the first nine months of the year.
Insurance companies operating in the UAE are facing difficulty in reinsuring fire risks, particularly for old buildings with flammable claddings as premiums and terms have tightened for upcoming renewals, said insurance industry players.
The Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) team, comprising Mr Richard Teng, CEO of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) and senior management from the Capital Markets, Human Resources and Strategy & Business Affairs departments, travelled to Singapore last month to attend the FinTech Festival activities and relevant business meetings. ADGM also hosted the Abu Dhabi pavilion at the FinTech Exhibition, alongside other dedicated country pavilions such as Japan and India.
Cyber security risks should be one of the top of priorities for companies in the UAE and the Gulf, experts advised at a seminar in Dubai.
The insurance and banking sectors in the UAE are set for a major change – with the implementation next January of a new strategy, identified as the Emiratisation “point based system”.
Africa
The African Risk Capacity Insurance Company Limited (ARC Ltd) is processing an insurance payout of approximately US$8.1 million to the Government of Malawi to support its response to recent droughts.
South Africa’s Liberty Holdings has concluded two more short-term insurance transactions in Botswana and Malawi, marking continued progress on its African expansion strategy through acquisitions and partnerships to increase its footprint and diversify revenue streams.
Preparations are underway to amend Algeria's insurance law to promote the development of the industry and to improve services provided by insurance companies.
Insurance companies will soon offer cyber insurance products in Algeria, according to the President of the Algerian Union of Insurance and Reinsurance Companies (UAR), Mr Brahim Djamel Kessali.
Algerian national reinsurer Central Company of Reinsurance (CCR Algiers) has increased its capital to DZD22 billion (US$199.2 million), 16% more than the previous amount of DZD19 billion.
Egypt's recent decision to devalue its currency by 48% and to allow it to float will lead to insurance premiums rising by 25% to 30%, according to industry players.
The Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority (EFSA) has issued for the first time regulations governing microinsurance. It also set the rules that govern the issuance and distribution of electronic policies.
The Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) has appointed Mr Godfrey Kiptum as the Acting Commissioner of Insurance and CEO, replacing the long serving CEO Sammy Makove, who is on terminal leave pending the expiry of his eight year stint with the regulator.
Casablanca-headquartered Atlanta Insurance has received approval from the authorities for it to set up a non-life insurance subsidiary in the Ivory Coast.
Attijariwafa Bank (AWB), a leading bank in Morocco, has sold part of Wafa Assurance to the National Investment Company (SNI) to fund the bank's international expansion.
The Allianz Group has finalised its acquisition of 98.9% of Zurich Insurance Morocco following the receipt of regulatory approval.
The Tunisian authorities will promote mergers among insurance companies to consolidate the industry and establish national insurance champions emulating the example set by Morocco, according to Mr Hafedh Gharbi, President of the insurance regulator, General Insurance Committee (CGA).
At least five local and foreign insurers, including three Moroccan groups, have shown interest in acquiring a stake of up to 35% in Tunisian insurer AMI Assurances, said media reports.
Global
Hosted by the Central Bank of Paraguay, this year’s IAIS 23rd Annual Conference concluded with two days of dialogue and panel discussions in a diverse programme for both advanced and emerging insurance markets. During a panel focused on major initiatives, the IAIS announced plans to revise the existing ComFrame structure by integrating text into the Insurance Core Principle (ICP) format over the coming months.
The Global Federation of Insurance Associations (GFIA) has in its annual report for 2015-2016 noted the important role that the insurance sector continues to play in underpinning the Global-20 (G-20) goals of growth and investment, as well as GFIA’s continued engagement with the G-20 presidency, which this year was held by China.
Protectionist policies against foreign (re)insurers by jurisdictions can create concentration risks in their economies and restrict the development of their (re)insurance markets, according to Insurance Europe, the European insurance and reinsurance federation.
Despite the dramatic slump in oil and gas prices since 2014 which has led to well-known dislocations in the global market place, energy and power insurance will remain a “growth business” with attractive prospects, said Bahrain-based Trust Re in its white paper “The Changing Global Energy Landscape – Opportunities and Challenges for Energy Underwriters”.
Takaful
The development of takaful in Algeria has been slow as the sector faces a number of challenges including the lack of a comprehensive legal framework for Islamic finance.
The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) plans to issue new Islamic insurance standards, announced Mr Abdul Rahman Mohammed Al-Baker, Executive Director of Financial Institutions Supervision at the financial regulator.
Several insurers are ready to offer Shariah-compliant products that complement Islamic banking as Morocco’s central bank aims to allow Islamic banks to begin business early next year.
The Company for Cooperative Insurance (Tawuniya) has renewed its health insurance deal with Saudi Telecom Company (STC) in what is considered to be one of the largest insurance deals across the Kingdom.
The Council of Cooperative Health Insurance (CCHI) has unveiled a plan for Saudisation of jobs in the sector to fill leadership positions and groom local cadres.
The combined profits of insurance companies in Saudi Arabia soared by 115% to SAR1.5 billion (US$400 million) for the first nine months of this year compared to SAR705 million for the corresponding period last year.
Abu Dhabi’s Union National Bank (UNB) has revealed plans to set up an Islamic insurance firm through a joint venture with Orient Insurance Company, reported Reuters.
While the large majority (70%) of people polled in a survey on Islamic insurance said that they would buy takaful products, almost half said that they were not offered that option, according to a white paper released by Islamic Insurance Association of London (IIAL).