Can technology change culture of Nigerians toward insurance

Just 1 percent of working Nigerian adults have an insurance plan of any type. Car insurance is supposed to be a compulsory requirement for owning and driving cars in Nigeria, but it has been a tough sell. Unless you are a landlord, housing insurance probably never crosses your mind.

The most tantalizing health and life insurance packages face the assured “God forbid rebuttal, with a sprinkling of “it’s not my portion” on top.

Insurance is future relief against unforeseen events. By paying a fixed regular amount every month or so, an individual buys an ability to start, not from scratch, but from the point of last use when something wrong happens. Insurance preserves value and removes the fear of starting over, which can be crippling at times.

So why has it been difficult to get Nigerians interested in insurance plans? Adia Sowho doesn’t think this is a complex question.

During her time at Etisalat Nigeria, she attempted to partner with insurance companies to offer insurance to the telco’s customers. Those conversations fell through for different reasons but the experience helped form her current view of the difficulty in the market.

“Insurance is a product that carries quite a bit of sophistication,” Sowho said on Digital Identity Matters, a recent live discussion on the intersection of identity technology and insurance organised by VerifyMe Nigeria.

This sophistication shows up in the value users place on their possessions. An ideal insurance buyer would be seriously disturbed by the possibility of loss that they would do anything possible to minimise the future impact of such a loss.

However, the majority of Nigerians are just “not at that level of sophistication in our thinking just yet,” Sowho says.

Bayo Adesanya, the chief digital officer at AXA Mansard, a Nigerian insurance provider, agrees with Sowho’s framing of the problem. He is convinced that growth in insurance will be driven by retail adoption by an emerging type of consumer who has high expectations for convenience and familiarity.

“That segment will not buy a lot of the products that are on offer today because those products were not designed for them,” Adesanya says.

To correct this, he believes insurance products should be tailored to meet potential customers at points of contact that they are already used to.

That would mean integrating USSD functionalities for people who use feature phones, in place of paper-based enrollment and access systems. There is also room for practitioners to learn from traditional rotational savings and credit associations (ROSCAs), like the ajo system.

It’s a train of thought that appeals to Esigie Aguele, co-founder and CEO of VerifyMe. Changing present habits around insurance is a move to influence the culture and there’s no way to do so effectively without adapting formal insurance terminologies (like “premiums”) in ways that will be familiar to people who already have various forms of alternative insurance.

However, Aguele believes there is a great opportunity for accelerating adoption by using digital identity technology of the sort VerifyMe provides.

Founded in 2013 and evolved to a Know Your Customer tech company in 2017, VerifyMe provides digital verification services that comply with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s tier-3 standards for verification as well as requirements for anti-money laundering tracking.

At the moment, VerifyMe does tens of thousands of address verifications in a month, including for about 16 banks in Nigeria. Aguele says this ‘verification engine’ has shown an optimum capacity for verifying insurance customers’ assets in every local government area in Nigeria.

“The technology is there, the APIs are there today. But with the market we have, there’s a lot of need for regulation and enforcement so we can grow that market, while we work on the economic issues that will change cultural perceptions.”

Aguele’s optimism for insurance in Nigeria borrows from the state of the market in South Africa, which is worth $50bn and contributes 17 pecent  to GDP. In his view, Nigeria – which has 3 times South Africa’s population, should be doing much better than the paltry sub-one-percent contribution to GDP.

Sowho is skeptical about the view that insurance will grow in Nigeria by a reliance on more regulation. Also, it will not be possible to try to innovate by circumventing existing regulations.

But she is confident that a reimagined approach that starts small and moves gradually up the user case scale will move the needle quicker. Of course, enabled by digital identity systems for crucial insurance components like address verification.

By admin

AIG recorded 15 percent commercial rate increases in the fourth quarter of last year and believes market hardening will continue through 2021.

Announcing fourth-quarter and full-year 2020 results, Peter Zaffino, AIG’s president and chief operating officer, said the insurer’s general insurance business continued to see “considerable” rate increases and tighter terms and conditions in the fourth quarter.

He added that commercial saw “strong” rates momentum of about 15 percent and improvement across all lines expect workers compensation, according to results service  Seeking Alpha.

International commercial rates were up 14 percent in Q4 and accelerated in the second half of last year, explained Mr Zaffino, who will be taking over as AIG’s CEO from Brian Duperreault on 1 March.

North America commercial rate increases were 21 percent in the fourth quarter, compared to 14 percent in the prior-year period, explained Mr Zaffino. He said this improvement was driven by excess casualty that saw rates increase of 45% and financial lines that were up over 25 percent, led by a 35 percent rise in D&O. North American retail property and Lexington wholesale property both saw rates increase by about 30 percent and Lexington casualty business was up 25 percent

Mr Zaffino expects the commercial market hardening to continue in 2021.

“We expect to see these rate increases be above loss costs. We expect that these rate increases will be balanced across our global portfolio and across multiple lines of business,” he said.

He added that AIG is going to be “very disciplined” about where it deploys its capacity for P&C risks and ensure it gets the “right price for the exposure”.

AIG’s CFO Mark Lyons agreed that there are no signs of price increases decelerating. He added that price rises started a little bit later for international business, so its market trajectory is slightly different to North America.

Cyber crimes hit Nigeria, Morocco as countries scamper for cyber insurance

By Favour Nnabugwu

Cybercrime, the phenomenon that does not believe in geographical boundaries, threatens every country in the world.

Today it poses a major threat to the stability of all states, as it feeds on the fruits of the exponential evolution of information and communications technology, such as the Internet.

The Internet has become an essential means of economic development and social transformation.

This is the case in Nigeria and Morocco as in most countries that have opted for economic openness and transformation towards an information and communications society.

The use of work tools (computers, laptops, tablets) for personal use is seen as a major risk to the security of information systems. Teleworking and the use of the Cloud are also considered to be among the factors exacerbating the risk

Nigeria is said to have lost $649 million to cyber attack. According to Hiscox, cyber attacks cost organisations about $200,000 on the average. The NotPetya attack for example cost pharmaceutical giant, Merck $870,000,000 and Danish shipping company, Maersk $300,000,000. The above underscores the Impact of cyberattack to an organisation or a country as a whole.

Only insurance can ameliorate the lost to cyber crimes. A cyber insurance policy, “also referred to as cyber risk insurance or cyber liability insurance coverage (CLIC), is designed to help an organization mitigate risk exposure by offsetting costs involved with recovery after a cyber-related security breach or similar event.”

Cyber insurance is fast becoming an integral part of survival for organisations. According to PwC, the cost of premium is predicted to be $7.5 billion by 2020.

Cyber insurance policy characteristically covers expenses related to first and third parties claim. The cover include cost of the breach, infringement of data protection and privacy laws, and cost of recovery. When there is a claim, the insurance company is expected to indemnify the assured the cost of forensic investigation; computer and data restoration costs; business interruption; public relations cost; notification of victims of the breach cost; electronic theft and fraud protection; and cyber extortion. In the event that a third party suffers from the loss occasioned on the assured, the insurance company will be expected to indemnify the third parties in accordance with the terms of the insurance policy.

Threatened by the phenomenon of cybercrime, Morocco is also aware of the duality of the need for digital transformation and cyber risk.

Morocco has updated the wording of its laws, especially the penal code, and has implemented new decrees and laws regarding digital regulation such as Law 53-05 regarding electronic exchange of legal data and Law 09-08 regarding automated processing of personal data.

The fight against cybercrime requires certification of human skills in analysing and understanding advanced coding, programming and information technology development techniques. .

The fight against cybercrime also certainly involves raising awareness among Internet users and providing continuing education to information systems security managers.

American International Group (AIG) reported a net loss of 5.973 billion USD as at the end of December 2020 compared to a net profit of 3.326 billion USD in 2019.

The American insurer’s results are strongly impacted by the coronavirus and natural disasters’ losses.

On 31 December 2019, the gross written premiums reached 33.946 billion USD compared to 34.738 billion, thus degrading by 2.2 percent

The combined ratio was set at 104.3 percent compared to 99.6 percent by late 2019.

AIG net income attributable to AIG common shareholders of $1.7 billion, or $1.98 per diluted common share, for the first quarter of 2020, compared to $654 million, or $0.75 per diluted common share, in the prior year quarter. The improvement was primarily due to $3.5 billion of pre-tax net realized capital gains largely related to mark-to-market gains from variable annuity and interest rate hedges and the impact of our non-economic non-performance risk adjustment, per GAAP, on the fair value of our liabilities compared to $446 million of pre-tax net realized capital losses in the prior year quarter.

Adjusted after-tax income attributable to AIG common shareholders was $99 million, or $0.1 1 per diluted common share, for the first quarter of 2020, compared to $1.4 billion, or $1.58 per diluted common share, in the prior year quarter. The decrease was primarily due to lower net investment income driven by declines in equity markets and losses on FVO bonds from widening spreads in credit markets, and the impact of COVID-19.

Brian Duperreault, AIG’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “In the face of COVID-19, an unprecedented global catastrophe, our colleagues have shown great resilience and remain focused on what we do best, which is helping our clients manage risk, especially in difficult times.

“It has been heartbreaking to watch this humanitarian crisis unfold over the last few months. At the same time, the courage, compassion and empathy that have emerged, particularly from first responders, health care providers and others on the front lines, has been heartwarming. AIG is committed to assisting with relief efforts across the globe and will be making an inaugural $5 million contribution to our recently reinstated AIG Foundation for this purpose.

“AIG was in a strong financial position before this crisis began and remains in a strong financial position today. While we believe COVID-19 will be the single largest CAT loss the industry has ever seen, the significant body of work our team has undertaken since late 2017 has served us well as we navigate through this evolving situation. AIG is well-positioned to emerge as a global insurer of choice with significant financial flexibility.

“In the first quarter of 2020, our core businesses delivered strong results building on the momentum we had coming into the year. In General Insurance, the adjusted accident year combined ratio continued to improve, and Life and Retirement delivered solid results despite unfavorable capital markets and continued low interest rates.

“The COVID-19 crisis has created significant uncertainty, and it will take time to understand its broader ramifications. In light of this, AIG is withdrawing previously issued guidance, including that relating to Adjusted Return on Common Equity. However, we do expect to see continued improvement in General Insurance, particularly in the adjusted combined ratio, and, in Life and Retirement, we do not believe that the impact of COVID-19 will result in a material reduction of our long-term return profile.

“While the new normal COVID-19 will create for each of us is still unknown, I am confident that AIG will continue to move forward on its journey to become a top performing company and leading insurance franchise.”

By Favour Nnabugwu

Third-party liability motor insurance sales through the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD), channel, otherwise known as mobile insurance, are being undermined by rate cutting.

This is due to the fact that some insurance companies still sell third-party motor policies below the standard price of NGN5,000 ($13.12).

The USSD is a simple self-service solution that enables car owners/users to purchase authentic third party motor insurance via their mobile phones.

The platform guarantees customer convenience, easy and secure access, real-time interaction and speedy service.

Consequently, most customers would rather buy at the reduced rate than through the USSD channel.

The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) took a bold steps in the fight against fake motor insurance policy in Nigeria as it launched the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) code *565*11# that would enable motorists verify the authenticity of their insurance policies.

The former Chairman of the NIA, Mr Tope Smart, at the launch in Lagos, said the device was designed to bring insurance closer to the people and ultimately eliminate fake insurance certificates in the market.

He noted that in 2010, the association took a major step towards eliminating fake insurance certificates in the market, as it initiated the Nigerian Insurance Industry Database (NIID), stressing that the database went live in 2011 and insurance policies obtained by motorists could be checked real time online on the internet and through dedicated hand held devices

He said the objective of the NIID is to serve as an authentic database of the Nigerian insurance industry, providing qualitative statistics/analysis of the industry data, as well as a vehicle for easy verification of genuine insurance certificates by all stakeholders and to reduce incidences of fraudulent insurance transactions, especially for motor and marine policies.

Smart posited that the industry has continued to reap the benefits of the scheme, adding that prior to the establishment of the platform, cloning and faking of insurance certificates was a thriving business, but the establishment of the database has assisted the industry in reducing the incidents of fake insurance certificates in the market and that presently, there are over three million vehicle details on the platform.

“The NIID platform had been operational nationwide, but with challenges in verification in areas with poor internet coverage.

Verification of motor certificates through the dedicated devices became highly impaired due to the vicissitudes of internet operations in the hinterlands. This led to the introduction of the USSD technology.

“The USSD is a Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) technology used to send text between a mobile phone and an application programme in the network. It works independent of internet connectivity. In this instance, any mobile phone (not necessarily a smartphone) would communicate with the NIID system to retrieve policy status whenever required.
“It is hoped that with the USSD, we would have fully overcome the problems associated with the dedicated devices as it guarantees uninterrupted service throughout the country and on all networks. Our existing and prospective customers now have the opportunity to confirm the genuineness of their respective policies at the time of purchase to avoid any embarrassment should claim occur,” he said.

The Acting Managing Director, Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System, Niyi Ajao, said the device will assist motorists in acquiring genuine policies and getting claims whenever there is problem with their insured vehicles.

He said the device operates on platforms of the major mobile telecommunications providers in the country, stressing that it is a win-win for insurance operators and motorists.

Managing Director, Courteville Business Solutions Plc, Dr. Adebola Akindele, said there is huge insurance potentials in the country and urged insurers to take the campaign on the device to states where there are presently less enforcement and millennials who are mostly consumers of technological devices.

He told insurers to redouble efforts in ensuring that the number of insured vehicles surpass what it is presently.

India Life Insurance record 12.75% rise in turn over March 2020

By admin

The Indian life insurance market recorded a 12.75 percent turnover increase during the fiscal year 2019-2020, ending 31 March 2020.

The premiums went from 5 080 billion INR (73.01 billion USD) at 31 March 2019 to 5 730 billion INR (76.15 billion USD) one year later.

Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), the only state-owned company in the market, accounted for 66.22 percent of life premium income in the year 2019-2020. The remaining 33.78 percent were achieved by the 23 other private life insurers. This percentage is roughly equal to that of the previous year set at 33.58 percent

During the period under review, the net profit reported by all Indian life insurance companies amounted to 77.28 billion INR (1.02 billion USD), a decrease of 8.4 percent compared to the 84.36 billion INR (1.21 billion USD) recorded one year earlier.

The private sector posted results degrading by 12.7 percent set at 50.16 billion INR (666.69 million USD). The net profit generated by LIC during the year 2019-2020 amounted to 27.13 billion INR (360.59 million USD

By Favour Nnabugwu

Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, has lifted the ban on Boeing 737 Max Aircraft operating in the Nigerian Airspace.

The ban was placed on 737 after two fatal accident involving the aircraft.

A statement signed by the Director General, NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu said the lifting of the ban came into effect on 12th February, 2021.
Captain Nuhu in the statement said : “Consequent upon the two accidents of Lion Air Flight 610, an Indonesia flight which crashed into the Java Sea 13mins after takeoff, and Ethiopian Airlines flight 320, which crashed six minutes after takeoff, made the Honourable Minister of Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika pronounced the ban on the operations of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in the Nigerian airspace.”

” On the 18th November 2020, the Authority received a Continued Airworthiness Notification to the International Community (CANIC) CAN-2020-24 advising it of the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAAs) ongoing continued operational safety activities related to returning Boeing Model 737-8 and 737-9 (737 MAX) aircraft service.”

” This however, made the FAA issue a final rule/Airworthiness Directive (AD) that mandated the following actions for Boeing 737 MAX aircraft which includes; Installation new flight control computer software and new 737 MAX display system software; Incorporate certain Airplane Flight Manual flight crew operating procedures, Modify horizontal stabiliser trim wire routing installations; Conduct an angle of attack sensor system test; and Conduct an operation readiness flight.”

” NCAA recognize that a Joint Authority Technical Review (JATR) that comprised of International Aviation Authorities such as the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Transport Canada (TC) and the Singapore Civil Aviation Authority amongst others carried out a joint review of the Boeing 737 MAX safety system alongside FAA and NASA”.

“In the light of the above, the FAA has released documents on Boeing 737 Flight Standardization Board Report, revision 17, identifying special pilot training for the 737 MAX and Safety Alert for Operators”.

“NCAA recognises the joint review of the Boeing 737 Max Safety System and came up with the following actions required of all foreign and domestic operators”:

The statement further said “All intending domestic operators are required to work with the Boeing Company and NCAA for the Aircraft Type Certificate Acceptance Programme in order to have the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft registered in Nigeria and issued with a Standard Certificate of Airworthiness.”

“All foreign air operators that intend to operate the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft into Nigeria must submit evidence of compliance with the FAA AD 2020-24-02.The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority will continue to ensure strict compliance to Safety Regulations as violation[s] will be viewed seriously,” the statement read.

By Favour Nnabugwu

The country’s biggest lenders including Access Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc are diversifying outside their core operations to boost 30 percent profit.

The banks are also mapping effort after covid-19 and a plunge in crude oil curtailed the home market to open insurance brokerage firms In Nigeria, through a holding financial institution that will enable it open subsidiaries in insurance brokerage and payments.

Access Bank Plc, for instance is looking to generate as much as 30 percent of profit outside its home market, following a series of acquisitions spanning East and West Africa last year.

The lender expects African subsidiaries and its U.K. unit to account for about 25-30 percent of profit before tax in the next three to five years from 21 percent in the third quarter, it said in response to questions via WhatsApp. The same range of addition to pre-tax profit is projected to assets, deposits and revenue, it said.

The Lagos-based bank currently operates in 12 countries. It said this year it will expand in eight new African markets by setting up offices in some countries, partnering with existing banks in some nations or deploying digital platforms to provide services to customers.

“We see strong contributions from our key African markets, regional hubs and our outside of Africa international business driven out of the UK,” the lender said.

It plans to grow loans by 10 percent this year to support clients whose businesses are benefiting from the coronavirus pandemic such as telecom and health companies, according to the lender.

Although, the nation exited a second contraction in four years in the fourth quarter, the sluggish economy gives no incentive to further boost lending, it said.

6 Nigerians make UK Royal Academy’s 2021 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation Shortlist

Six Nigerian innovators have been shortlisted among 10 others for the Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation (APEI), UK Royal Academy of Engineering.

This year’s Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation shortlists includes the creators of a low-cost ventilator powered by water instead of electricity, a digital financial services solution that audits users based on their online social profiles, and sustainable packaging developed from banana stems to help battle plastic pollution and deforestation.

The Africa Prize, run every year by the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering, awards crucial commercialisation support to ambitious African innovators who are transforming their communities through scalable engineering solutions.

The 2021 shortlist represents nine countries including, for the first time, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Ethiopia and the Gambia. Six of the 16-strong shortlist are female innovators.

Below are the six Nigerian innovators who made the list:

Elohor Thomas

Elohor Thomas created CodeLn, an automated tech recruitment platform that helps companies looking to hire people in the software engineering field. It is also an accessible learning tool, allowing novices and professional programmers alike to improve their coding skills, with special functions for those with additional needs, such as visually impaired and neurodiverse coders.

Faith Adesemowo

Faith Adesemowo developed Social Lender, a digital service that provides immediate access to formal financial services to those with little to no previous access.

Jacob Azundah

Jacob Azundah developed Aevhas, a high-efficiency garri processing machine, used to process the tuberous roots of the cassava plant into garri – a powdery flour and diet staple across West Africa.

Olugbenga Olufemi Olubanjo

Olugbenga Olufemi Olubanjo created Reeddi, an energy system used to provide clean, reliable and affordable electricity to households and businesses operating in the energy-poor communities of sub-Saharan Africa.

Taofeek Olalekan

Taofeek Olalekan developed RealDrip, a medical device that simplifies essential intravenous therapy, used especially for pregnant women during drip and blood transfusions.

Yusuf Bilesanmi

Yusuf Bilesanmi developed ShiVent, a low-cost, non-electric and non-invasive ventilator for patients with respiratory difficulties, available at a fraction of the cost of mechanical ventilators. Its simple design enables it to be operated by unspecialised healthcare workers.

The programme has a track record of identifying engineering entrepreneurs with significant potential, many of whom have gone on to achieve greater commercial success and social impact.

A unique package of support – running from December 2020 to July 2021 – is being provided to the shortlisted innovators to help them accelerate their businesses. The benefits of selection include comprehensive and tailored business training, bespoke mentoring, media and communications training, funding and access to the Academy’s network of high-profile, experienced engineers and business experts based in the UK and across Africa, as well as access to the alumni network after the programme concludes.

This year marks the first fully digital programme, providing intensive expert guidance and community support through a mixture of an online group and one-on-one sessions.

Emma Wade Smith OBE, Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Africa at the UK Department for International Trade said: “It makes me very proud to be part of this initiative that demonstrates so clearly and practically the power of partnerships between Africa and the UK.

The range of innovations and innovators in this years shortlist offers an insight into Africa’s extraordinary diversity and talent and illustrate the importance we all place on nurturing and supporting Africa’s self-starters to create and scale sustainable and inclusive products and services that will help us rebuild our economies to be greener, cleaner and more resilient.

The Africa Prize helps to accelerate entrepreneurial capacity and ecosystems. I am excited to follow the progress of this year’s cohort, and am certain we will see many of these inventions go on to create and sustain jobs and benefit our societies, as so many of the previous participants in the Africa Prize have done.”

Following this period of support, four finalists will be selected and invited to pitch their improved innovation and business plan to the judges and a live audience. A winner will be selected to receive £25,000, and three runners up will receive £10,000 each.
2021 shortlist includes innovations that provide exciting solutions for key challenges addressing most of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, including reducing waste, improving healthcare efficiency, and a range of digital solutions to improve business productivity.

The companies range from transforming banana and plantain stems to biodegradable paper packaging products, a low-cost biowaste processing machine for farmers to manage biowaste, a high-efficiency machine used to process Garri, and bioplastic made from biomass which dissolves in water.

The entrepreneurs have also developed a cost-effective 3D printed prosthetic hand for people with upper limb amputations, 3D printed orthopaedic equipment for patients and healthcare workers, a low-cost non-electric and non-invasive ventilator for patients with respiratory difficulties, a device that uses artificial intelligence to simplify intravenous therapy, and a digital healthcare platform which manages the medical data of patients to ensure continuity of care.

According to rating agency, “The stable outlook reflects AM Best’s view that the balance sheet strength is expected to remain underpinned by the strongest level of risk-adjusted capitalisation, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR).

Over time, increasing capital requirements stemming from strong business growth are likely to be adequately supported by retained earnings, bolstered by the company’s robust underwriting profitability.”

With excellent liquidity as a result of cash and equivalents comfortably covering net insurance liabilities, the rating agency pointed out that Custodian has moderate exposure to local equities and real estate, which account for approximately one-fifth of invested assets, even as it has high reliance on reinsurance, primarily for the oil and energy line of business.

On the operating performance of the insurer which the rating agency rated strong, it stressed that, it’s good and improving overall earnings that significantly exceed inflation are underpinned by robust underwriting profitability and investment income, as operating performance is expected to remain strong over the medium term.

With reference to the Enterprise Risk Management of the company, the report further states that “Internal risk management expertise has improved in recent years. There is an ongoing process of risk identification and monitoring through the use of specific risk management tools. An internal economic capital model has been developed and incorporated into the company’s strategic decision-making process. High economic, political and regulatory risk exposures are expected to remain a significant challenge for the company’s risk management”.