Continental Reinsurance Posts N3.1b Profit in 2016

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

Pan-African insurance firm, Continental Reinsurance Plc, has announced a profit of N3.1 billion for the year 2016, representing 46 percent from N2.14 billion recorded in 2015.

In its annual financial statements released not too long ago, the company said as at December 31, 2016, it made a turnover of N22.4 billion, up from N19.74 billion in 2015 giving a 14 percent year-on-year growth.

In the financial statements, analysed by Business Post, it was observed that during the year under review, Continental Reinsurance Plc recorded a profit before tax of N4.7 billion, up from N2.92 billion in 2015, an increase of 60 percent, while it paid a tax of N1.5 billion, leaving its profit after tax at N3.12 billion.

Group Managing Director of Continental Reinsurance, Dr Femi Oyetunji, while commenting on the results, stated that, “Despite varied developments and widely contrasting fortunes in individual business lines in our underwriting portfolio, our geographic diversity and varied asset mix cushioned us.”

“We continued to see sturdy growth and profitability in some regions and overall maintained strong group performance,” he added.

“It was the realization of the likelihood of shocks in our principal market, and vulnerability to portfolio concentration, that made us commit to diversification as a core element of our strategy.

“We continue to see stability and strong traction in specific locations across our network and our pan-African footprint allows us ample room to counterbalance local volatility and hedge downside risks in our investments portfolio,” he said further.

Dr Oyetunji pointed out that, “Even as new risks emerge, we will persist in our efforts to grow our business by expanding our client base, building partnerships, and excelling in localized service delivery.

“We are also focused on improving the profitability of our business through better risk selection, more efficient distribution, process improvement, cost optimization and judicious asset management.

“We look forward to continuing to report results that reflect the overall net positive impact of these actions in the years ahead.”