The aggregate net profit of 33 companies operating in the life insurance segment in Lebanon reached $118.2m in 2018, constituting an increase of 7.4% from $110.1m in 2017, reported the Economic Research & Analysis Department of Byblos Bank citing data released by the Insurance Control Commission.
Beirut headquartered Chedid Re has appointed insurance stalwart Lazhar Charfeddine as its new general manager for Chedid Re in Morocco, from where the 30+ year industry veteran will oversee the company's rapidly growing portfolio in North and West Africa.
Although Lebanese insurers are accustomed to operating in a challenging economic environment, the accelerating decline in investor confidence and US dollar cashflow constraints create further risks for insurers with fixed costs in US dollars, says AM Best.
The combined net profits of insurance companies in Lebanon increased by 14% to $174m (LBP262.5m) in 2018 compared with the previous year, according to the Insurance Control Commission (ICC)'s annual report for 2018.
Total premiums generated by independent brokers operating across Lebanon reached $234.2m in 2018, constituting a marginal increase of 0.6% from 2017.
Insurance linked to remittances might represent a large market opportunity for insurers, of up to around $1bn in the next 10 years, according to Swiss Re Institute.
Lebanese companies signed $13.6m worth of export credit insurance contracts with Kuwait-headquartered Arab Investment & Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (Dhaman) in 2018.
The Lebanese Insurance Brokers Syndicate has informed the Minister of Economy and Trade, Mr Mansour Batish, of the proposed establishment of a regional association of Arab insurance brokers to be based in Lebanon.
Lebanon's caisse mutuelle (mutual fund) system provides an excellent infrastructure for citizens to voluntarily create a common disaster insurance pool autonomously from the government, according to a commentary by environmental policy researcher and entrepreneur Mr Basil Mahfouz.
MetLife Alico has been ranked first and 12th in 2018 in terms of life and non-life premiums, respectively, according to Al-Bayan magazine's annual survey of the insurance sector in Lebanon.