Stakeholders Urge Insurance Companies To Brace Up For Recapitalization

Stakeholders in the insurance ecosystem have urged the Insurance Companies in the country to brace up for Recapitalization exercises like that experienced in the banking sector.

This is as indications have emerged that Insurance companies in Nigeria may be facing a new minimum capital requirement in excess of 650 percent if the insurance bill scales through at the National Assembly.

They urged insurance companies to put on their thinking caps by fashioning out strategies to raise funds ahead of any regulatory pronouncement, noting that the best time for recapitalisation is now.

According to Sunny Nwosu, shareholder emeritus who spoke at an insurance company’s annual general meeting (AGM) held in Lagos recently said,

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“You must start to plan on how to raise your capital because it must come with what I have read concerning the new proposed bill.”

Nwosu said it will not be easy for insurers to enter the same market with banks in search of investors, noting that insurers must get their strategies right.

On his part, Boniface Okezie, national coordinator, Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN), identified the need for insurers to begin to build reserves for a stronger capacity.

“Insurance companies must begin to look in to the future with respect to recapitalisation so that no one is taken unaware when the time comes,” he said.

Stephen Alangbo, managing director/CEO, Cornerstone Insurance Plc, speaking on the company’s plans for the future said,

“We are well positioned for any recapitalisation measures the regulator may introduce. We believe that this will enhance our financial stability, expand our underwriting capacity, and allow us to invest in new technologies and innovative products.”