By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Wapic Insurance Plc has recorded a loss in its profit for the year 2016 by 55 percent, its 2016 audited report has revealed.
The company declared a profit after tax of N586.1 million for the 2016 full year financial statements against N1.3 billion it achieved in 2015.
According to the details, Wapic Insurance Plc posted a profit before tax of N1.2 billion compared with N1.7 billion it declared in the year before, indicating a decline by 28 percent.
During the period under review, the insurance firm used N4.2 billion as operating expenses in contrast to N3.5 billion it spent 12 months earlier.
As at December 31, 2016, the company had N2.22 billion in the cash and cash equivalents, including money market placements of N1.05 billion with maturity of not more than three months.
It was further gathered that Wapic Insurance reported a net insurance claims expenses of N2.88 billion in 2016, an increase of N1.24 billion over December 2015. It also recorded an increase of N370 million in net claim expenses between 2015 and 2016. The underwriting result at the end of the year amounted to an underwriting profit of N381 million compared to an underwriting profit of N1.48 billion reported during the year ended December 31, 2015.
The underwriting performance, we learnt, was impacted by the huge claim experience within the period.
Investment and other income grew by 29 percent, a reflection of the firm’s strategic direction which leveraged on investment income as a key revenue source due to the challenging operating environment witnessed during the year.
The growth from N2.89 billion in 2015 to N3.74 billion in 2016 is a reflection of Wapic Insurance’s efforts at growing investment portfolio with maximum yields within the challenging investment environment.
Wapic Insurance Group operates three companies namely: Wapic Insurance Plc (the parent company), Wapic Life Assurance Limited and Wapic Insurance (Ghana) Limited.
Its major business activity is insurance. However, the group is developing capacity for expansion into the asset management and property business.
