AXA Mansard Insurance Grows Earnings by 12% After IFRS 17 Implementation

AXA Mansard Insurance plc, a member of the AXA Group, has recorded 12 per cent revenue growth for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023, following the implementation of the IFRS17 and IFRS9 accounting standards.

The accounting standard became effective on January 1, 2023. consequently, gross earned premiums (Insurance revenues) become the principal revenue indicator given the change in accounting standard

The commercial activity of insurance operations will now be reported using insurance (earned) revenues as against gross written premiums (GWP). The reinsurance expenses will now also be reflected as “net expenses from reinsurance contracts held” with the main difference from what was previously reported being the netting of commissions received and claims recoveries from assumed reinsurance businesses. For asset management, commercial activity continues to be measured on revenues.

Commenting on the results, the Chief Financial Officer, Mrs Ngozi Ola-Israel, said, “In the first half of the year, we grew Gross Written premiums by 22%, delivering insurance revenue growth of 12% from N34.7 billion to N39.0 billion despite our challenging and evolving economic environment, particularly in the second quarter of the year.

“This performance further reinforces our resilience and capacity to produce sustainable results even in a challenging business environment. Our operating performance also improved significantly, with PBT growth of 528 per cent to 14.8 billion from 2.4 billion last year, owing to significant improvement in the P&C and L&S segments, net FX gains from devaluation effect as well as the significant recovery from the health segment.”

Commenting on AXA Mansard’s financials at the end of the first half of 2023, the Chief Executive Officer of AXA Mansard Insurance, Kunle Ahmed, said, “We are proud to retain the trust of customers, brokers, and partners despite the challenging economic environment.

According to him, “The outstanding performance demonstrates our dedication to ensuring sustainable growth in the face of this environment as we achieved improved revenue and operating performance in the first half of the year.

“With our focus on resilience, we will remain an exceptional insurer with great financial strength, excellent underwriting capabilities, and efficient claims management processes.

“However, looking forward to the second half of the year, we are optimistic about the opportunities for our business through improved processes with our technical and digital capabilities while prioritizing our customer-centricity, growth, and profitability.”

The underwriter said that the insurance revenues improved by 12 per cent YoY (39.0 billion vs 34.7 billion). Growth is driven by Health (+27%) and L&S (+23%), partly offset by a P&C decline of 5 per cent due to a change in the timing of booking of key business in the current period vs this time last year.

The life and health business recorded growth resulting from improved customer retention, increased share of existing business, and the acquisition of new businesses.

Gross revenues: grew 22 per cent YoY (N54.8 billion vs N45.0 billion).

Improved performance is due to our ability to acquire new businesses as well as our improving retention rates. Growth is spurred by Health (+26%), L&S (+20%), and P&C (+19%). P&C volumes performance is attributable to improved performance in the commercial lines growing by 19 per cent YoY.

Life volume acceleration is driven by the impacts of the new life savings product. Health volumes improve owing to increased premiums from re-pricing and renewal of key businesses.

P&C improves 19 per cent YoY due to strong performance in the Oil & Energy portfolio, which grows by 21% and is partially offset by declines in Aviation and Marine due to changes in the structure of key businesses.

Growth is also driven by improved performance in personal lines as well as increased premiums on strong renewals and new businesses. The focus remains on maintaining efficiency to ensure the growth and profitability of all our portfolios.

L&S segment grows 20 per cent YoY owing to improved performance in individual life business (+59%) which is partly offset by the 1% dip in group life due to delayed renewals of key businesses. Growth in the individual life portfolio is largely driven by the impact of the increase in customers onboarded and increased volumes from protection with the new life savings products. In addition, improved agent productivity has also contributed to the growth in revenues.

Total revenues improved 14% YoY, with higher management fees benefiting from improved 3rd party assets under management. Own AuMs improved by 25%, with 3rd party client count growing by 18%, leading to a 30% growth in 3rd party AuMs and a 28% growth in total AuMs.

Overall, PBT significantly improved by 528% YoY owing to 346% growth in P&C profits and significant growth in the health business, which is partly offset by a 37% dip in the life business. 346% growth in P&C is attributable to improved revenues and underwriting performance, as well as fair value gains. The dip in the life business is driven by increased claims experienced during the period compared to last year and partly offset by reduced underwriting expenses and higher investment margins. The health business continues with its recovery to deliver a N3.5bn profit owing to higher volumes, improved claims management, and operating efficiency.

Shareholder’s fund stood at N41.4 billion, growing by 40 per cent from N29.7bn in FY22 driven by profits in H1 and by fair value gains.

Return on Shareholder’s Equity (ROE) improved by 33.8 percentage points from 7.7 per cent prior year to 41.5% owing to the improved performance in the business. The operating performance of the group increased by 528% (N14.8bn from N2.4bn LY) while average shareholder’s equity also grew 16% (N35.6 from N30.7bn LY) owing to changes in fair value reserves. As a group, we remain committed to providing value to our shareholders.

Return on Assets (ROA) improved by 9.9 percentage points up to 12.0% from 2.1% when compared with the prior year. The growth indicates efficient asset utilization towards improved PBT growth of 528% (N14.8bn from N2.4bn LY). The average asset has also increased by 10% (N123.0bn from N111.9bn LY) owing to an improved asset base (near cash and insurance contracts assets) as we continue to consolidate on financial strength during the year.