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Jul 2021

News


MENA

Middle East: COVID-19 is 4th biggest cause of death in the region

COVID-19 was responsible for 5% of all life insurance claims, according to Zurich International Life in the Middle East in a report. It is the fourth highest cause of death in the region.
 


Algeria: Insurers owed more than $746m in premiums

Insurance premiums owing by businesses and public institutions to insurers in Algeria are forecast to rise to DZD100bn ($745.6m) in June, from DZD60bn in September 2020, according to a source with the Algerian Union of Insurance and Reinsurance Companies.
 


Bahrain: Move for insurers to handle minor traffic accidents seen as a pioneering step

The government’s plan to entrust investigations of minor traffic accidents to insurers is the first of its kind in the region and its implementation is a pioneering step for Bahrain, said Bahrain Insurance Association chairman Jawad Mohammed. The move is scheduled to take effect from 21 July.
 


Egypt: Insurance federation recommends ways to avoid claims leakage

The Insurance Federation of Egypt (IFE) has recommended to member companies ways to stem claims leakage. These include establishing a proper claims system, undertaking basic report analysis and using advanced tools such as predictive analytics.
 


Morocco: Insurers demand more investment avenues to counter falling interest rates

Insurers are asking for more room to manoeuvre and flexibility in investing in international markets and in ‘organisme de placement collectif en immobilier’ (OPCI), given the sustained fall in interest rates in recent years. An OPCI is a new investment instrument that allows a group of investors to pool their capital with a view to reinvesting them in professional rental real estate. They were introduced in June 2019 with an attractive tax framework for investors.
 


Oman: Reinsurer's pre-tax profit jumps by 53% in 1Q

Oman Re’s profit before tax increased by 53% to reach OMR458,000 ($1.2m) for 1Q2021 compared to OMR298,000 for the corresponding quarter in 2020.
 


Qatar: TPA signs cooperation agreement with healthcare provider

Third-party administrator (TPA) GlobeMed Qatar has signed a cooperation agreement with Alfardan Medical with Northwestern Medicine (AMNM), a medical and day surgery centre.
 


UAE: Listed insurers see profit soar by 76% in 1Q2021

The UAE-listed insurers posted a profit growth of 76% during the first quarter of 2021 when compared with the corresponding period of 2020, with total pre-tax profits amounting to AED681m ($185.4m) for 1Q2021, according to a report by Badri Management Consultancy.
 


UAE: Al Fardan Exchange partners with Orient Insurance to accept premium payments

Orient Insurance has partnered with Al Fardan Exchange, a money exchange and remittance house, to allow its life insurance customers to make insurance premium payments through any Al Fardan Exchange branch in the UAE.
 


Global

Dive In confirms dates for 2021 festival; calls for active allyship

The insurance industry’s festival for diversity and inclusion has been confirmed for its seventh consecutive year and will take place from 21 to 23 September this year. The festival will carry the theme ‘Active allyship’, calling on the industry to turn intention into action and to take responsibility for making changes that will help others be successful. This year’s event is expected to take on a hybrid format, combining both virtual and physical events.
 


US cyber insurance premiums doubled over five years: Aon study

US cyber insurance direct written premiums totalled $2.74bn in 2020, an increase of 21% over 2019’s $2.26bn across both standalone and package cyber products. The two categories more than doubled over a five-year period (2016: $1.35bn). The figures were revealed in Aon’s sixth annual edition of US cyber market update report.
 


Rate hardening in (re)insurance expected to continue through 2022

Insurance and reinsurance rate hardening is set to continue through next year, according to a recently-released Swiss Re report.
 


Eight leading reinsurers lend support to Lloyd's $900m new cover

Last month Lloyd’s announced it has secured a landmark GBP650m ($900m) five-year cover for its central fund which supports sustainable and profitable long-term market growth.
 


Life insurance sector's outlook upgraded to stable

Moody’s Investors Service said that it has changed the outlook for the global life insurance sector to stable from negative for 2021.
 


Takaful

Global: Compulsory health insurance to contribute to moderate growth of takaful over next 2-3 years

Growth prospects for takaful remain healthy in the GCC, Africa and Southeast Asia, helped by large Muslim populations, relatively low insurance penetration and rising demand for medical cover, according to a report by Moody’s Investors Service.
 


Turkey: Pact signed with business association to promote takaful

The Bereket Insurance group has signed a cooperation protocol with the Independent Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association (MUSIAD) to promote and expand participation insurance, also known as takaful.MUSIAD chairman Abdurrahman Kaan and Bereket Insurance, Bereket Pension and Bereket Tekaful general manager Mahmut Gungor attended the signing ceremony, according to a report by Insurance Gazette.
 


Qatar: Takaful accounts for 1% of total assets of its Islamic finance market

The total assets in Qatar’s Islamic finance sector amounted to QAR528bn ($145bn) at the end of 2020, according to a report published by Bait Al-Mashura Finance Consultations.
 


Morocco: Takaful forecast to lead to doubling of real estate financing

Real estate financing transactions of participatory banks are expected to double, spurred by the launch of takaful in Morocco. Moroccan experts in the field of participatory financing expect a recovery in the segment financing the acquisition of residential real estate in the coming year, reported Hespress.