By Dipo Olowookere
One of the insurers listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Great Nigeria Insurance Plc, has voluntarily delisted from the exchange.
This followed the unanimous decision of shareholders of the company at its Extra-Ordinary General Meeting (EGM) held in Lagos last week.
According to GNI, the delisting will afford it the opportunity to carry out an imminent corporate restructuring exercise to take advantage of emerging opportunities in the market and larger economy.
The firm emphasised that the delisting will not in any way cause loss of its business as there are similar unlisted insurance companies commanding significant share of the insurance market without being quoted on the NSE.
GNI also promised to give shareholders the opportunity of remaining with the company or have the choice of exit with full compensation.
The company explained that it took this step because over the past five years, there has been little or no trading activity on the shares held by the minority shareholders.
It added that there has also been considerable fall in trading volumes over the last 12 months in the March 2017 to March 2018 period.
In addition, the firm disclosed that shareholders have not been benefitting from the continued listing as they are not getting any exit opportunity and their investments had been locked up in the NSE.
The company also noted that it was not benefitting as its shares continue to trade at a significant discount on the intrinsic value.
However, Managing Director/CEO of the company, Mrs Cecilia Osipitan, expressed confidence that the firm’s focus on digital optimisation will translate into key strategic benefits in the coming years.
“Since the global trend now tilts towards digital lifestyle, it is imperative that as a forward-looking business entity, we push more aggressively to harness opportunities within the digital space.
“Therefore, to prove support for our retail expansion, we rolled out our improved GNIOnGO digital platform with a view to ensure seamless accessibility of our range of retail products,” she said.
On his part, Chairman of GNI, Mr Bade Aluko, commended the performance of the company in 2017 as Profit Before Tax rose by 202 percent to N449.7 million while the Gross Premium Written grew by 36.59 percent to N3.02 billion from N2.21 billion recorded in 2016. The total assets as at December 31, 2017 also moved to N10.12 billion as against N10 billion in the same period of 2016.
Great Nigeria Insurance Plc commenced business in 1960 with its headquarters located in Lagos.
Recently, following a directive by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that required banks to either divest from non-core banking subsidiaries or form holding company to hold those subsidiaries; Wema Bank divested transferring its 75 percent equity stake in GNI Plc to Insurance Resourcery and Consultancy Services Limited. The acquisition process started in 2011 and was concluded on September 21, 2016.
