The minimum capital for a national microinsurance licence shall be NGN3bn ($2.2m), five times the current capital, according to guidelines issued by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM).
In its recently released “Guidelines on licensing and renewal of insurance institutions’ licence in Nigeria”, NAICOM says that an application for a licence to transact microinsurance business in Nigeria shall be processed in four stages, namely:
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Stage 1 – Preliminary Stage
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Stage 2 – Application Stage
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Stage 3 – Verification Stage
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Stage 4 – Licence Stage
In addition, the Guidelines provide for the licensing of microinsurance windows and state-level microinsurance companies transiting to a national microinsurer.
Nigeria has also started a recapitalisation drive for the insurance industry as a whole. The Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act 2025 introduces higher Minimum Capital Requirements (MCR) of NGN10bn, NGN15bn, NGN25bn and NGN35bn for life, non-life, composite and reinsurance companies, respectively.