Jubilee and GA gain life premiums market share

Jubilee Insurance Centre in Nairobi. PHOTO | NMG

By Edna Mwenda More by this Author

Jubilee Insurance Company and GA Life Assurance Company grew their market share in the life or long-term business significantly in the second quarter that ended June as measured by gross premiums.

Their growth came at the expense of rivals like Britam Life Assurance and ICEA Lion Life Assurance which lost ground.

Data from the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) shows that Jubilee increased its market share in this category to 13.1 percent in the review period from 11.5 percent a year earlier.

GA Life, meanwhile, saw its market share rally to 6.1 percent from 3.6 percent. Britam, which retained its pole position, recorded a decline in market share to 20.7 percent from 21.3 percent. ICEA’s market share also dropped to 13.5 percent from 16.2 percent.

The IRA report noted that a few companies dominate the long-term business whose products include life assurance, annuities, pensions and investments.

“Six out of 23 insurers control a market share of at least five percent each of the total gross premium income under long-term insurance business segment by the end of second quarter 2022,” said the report.

“The remaining 17 companies controlled 34.8 percent of the market indicating that the Kenyan long-term insurance segment is dominated by a few players.”

Britam has retained the single largest market share of more than 20 percent over the last four years.

During the quarter under review, Britam handled Sh14.6 billion of the total Sh70.6 billion gross premiums for life insurers, followed by ICEA Lion’s Sh9.5 billion.

Jubilee came in third, handling Sh9.2 billion worth of business, followed by GA Life at Sh4.3 billion.

The industry recorded a 20.5 percent growth in premiums from Sh58.6 billion in the second quarter of 2021.

Britam also made the largest pre-tax profit in the long-term business at Sh759.2 million in the review period, followed by ICEA (Sh577.2 million) and Jubilee (Sh496.1 million).

Profits are even more concentrated in the long-term business than gross premium income, according to an analysis of the IRA statistics.

Britam’s pre-tax earnings, for instance, accounted for about 37 percent of the sector’s Sh2.05 billion.

Seven companies were in losses in the review period. Overall, the life business is more efficient in converting premiums received into profits as compared to the general insurance business.

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