AIICO Insurance boosts annual profit to N6.27bn

AIICO Insurance Plc has reported a profit before tax of N6.27 billion for the 2020 financial year, up from N5.99 billion in the previous year.

The company’s profit after tax increased by 17 per cent to N6.71 billion from N5.72 billion year-on-year, its unaudited financial statements obtained from the Nigerian Stock Exchange showed.

Its gross premium written rose by 24 per cent last year to N62.01 billion from N50.14 billion.

AIICO said its core businesses were affected as the COVID-19 pandemic hindered business development, disrupted plans for effective product mix, with consequent impact on its overall profit position.

“Specifically, our Retail Life business saw a decline in uptake of multiyear and large case size policies across the board. Endowment, travel and Deferred Annuity product lines, which were positioned for growth at beginning of the year, were particularly impacted by the pandemic,” it said.

It said customers were simply unwilling to commit to longer-term, higher premium risk-based policies.

The company said it had assessed the impact of the pandemic on its operations, cash flow, liquidity, capital resources, strategic and brand as well as risks and uncertainties about the impact on future years.

“The outcome of the assessment does not suggest any significant adverse impact on the company’s survival and sustainability,” it added.

AIICO said new business was constrained by movement restrictions, which affected its team’s ability to carry out on-site risk inspections and evaluations.

It said, “We are also prioritising the adoption of digital tools and new tech to adequately surmount the constraints imposed on offline sales by COVID-19.

“As the economy gradually reopens, our strategy will be to propel our performance for enhanced profitability through customer led innovation and deep market partnerships amongst other business recovery strategies.”