RSA contributors remitted N272.15 bn in Q3 2021

By admin

 

The National Pension Commission (PenCom,) said pension contributions remitted to individual RSAs in Q3 2021 stood at N272.15 billion.

This is contained in the commission’s third quarter report released in January 2022 that out of this total, the public sector accounted for N170.96 billion or 62.82%, while the private sector contributed N101.19 billion or 37.18%.

It added that the cumulative pension contributions from inception to the end of the third quarter of 2021 amounted to N7.37 trillion, which is an increase from N7.10 trillion as at the end of Q2 2021.

Meanwhile, the commission has said that a total of 12,877 RSAs holders initiated RSA transfers at the end of third (Q3) 2021, which was concluded in the first week of October 2021.

This was disclosed by the commission through it third quarter report released this month that this covered RSA transfer requests submitted by PFAs between 1 June 2021 to 31 August 2021, which were eligible for RSA transfer in the third quarter of 2021.

The commission noted that out of the total RSA Transfers initiated, 12,872 RSAs were transferred to their new PFAs along with their associated pension assets, while 5 RSAs were outstanding due to non-upload of the transaction history of their RSAs.

The total value of the pension assets in respect of the 12,872 RSAs transferred was N45,5millon.

Bancassurance contributes 20% of total insurance premiums in Tanzania

By admin

 

Banks now account for 19.9% of the total premium income of the insurance market, barely two years since lenders took up bancassurance.

Around 20 commercial banks had the licence to sell insurance products as of the end of December last year, reported The Citizen citing the Tanzania Insurance Regulatory Authority (TIRA).

According to TIRA’s quarterly performance report for the three months from 1 April to 30 June last year, total insurance premiums written in respect of both long-term and general insurance businesses was TZS202.7bn ($88m). Of this total, TZS40.36bn (19.9%) was generated through bancassurance.

Of the bancassurance total, general insurance business accounted for TZS15.97bn whereas long-term business contributed TZS24.39bn.

The report says that TIRA will continue to enhance compliance with bancassurance rules as well as to promote bancassurance so that it would be a more vibrant and efficient distribution channel.

Speaking to The Citizen, TIRA acting director for planning, research and market development, Mr Zakaria Muyengi, said that out of more than 40 banks, only 20 banks were licensed for bancassurance.

“That means more effort needs to be done in ensuring others grab the emerging opportunity,” he said.

He called on banks that are already licensed to expand their services to rural areas so that more people would easily access insurance services.

Continental Re selects jury members for the Pan-African Journalism Award 2022

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

Continental Re has selected the jury members for the 7th edition of the Pan-African Insurance and Reinsurance Journalism Award as application deadline ends today.

The jury is composed of the following personalities:

Michael Wilson, business and finance journalist;  Nadia Mensah-Acogny, Journalist, Forbes Africa
Kenneth Igbomor, Market News Editor (West Africa), CNBC Africa Gareth Stokes, Founder, Stokes Media Group
Shiamdass Appannah, Lloyd’s General Representative, Mauritius
Chakib Abouzaid, Secretary General of GAIF
Samia Heeda, Former Managing Director of Willis Towers Watson Re, Egypt
Agnes Lucy Lando, Associate Professor of Communication and Media Studies, Daystar University

The jury members will reward French, English and Arabic-speaking African journalists from print, broadcast or online media specializing in insurance and reinsurance.

The application deadline is 31 January 2022.

Pension funds hit N13trn in Q3 2021- PenCom

By Favour Nnabugwu
The third quarter report of the National Pension Commission, PenCom which ended on September 30, 2021 announced that pension fund had hit N13 trillion.

 

PenCom stats showed that pension funds assets invested in federal government securities accounted for 63.25 percent of total assets. The composition of investments in FGN securities were as follows: FGN bonds 92.20 percent treasury bills 3.45 percent and agency bonds, sukuk and green bonds accounted for 1.29percent.

The value of increase in the assets was 2.72% translating to N343.99bn to close at N13trn, the pension net asset value as at the end of Q2 (June 2021) was N12.66trn.

PenCom report noted the growth in Q3 2021 was slightly higher than the growth of N317bn (2.27 percent) recorded in Q2 2021. It was noted that inflows of N7.80bn were observed in fund IV (ethical fund), which commenced in Q3 2021.

PenCom ranking by size of contribution during Q3 indicated that top 5 contributed N127.04bn (65.12 percent) stretching it to top 10 came to N163.15bn (83.63 percent), however, bottom 5 accounted for N7.76bn (3.98 percent)while bottom 10 contributed N23.37bn (11.98 percent).

The statistics highlight the portfolio distribution of N9.14trn in RSA active funds (RSA funds I, II, III, and VI); N1.05trn in RSA retiree fund; N1.48trn in CPFAs; N1.31trn in approved existing schemes (AES) funds and N7.80bn for RSA fund VI, active and retiree.

Also the value of investment in quoted domestic ordinary shares stood at N873.49bn (6.72percent) of total assets under management), indicating an increase of N30.29bn (3.59 percent) compared to the N843.29bn invested in the asset class as at 30 September 2021.

The value of investments in domestic quoted equities increased primarily due to the appreciation in the prices of some stocks during the reporting period, besides, the Nigeria Exchange pension (NSE-PI) further appreciated by 6.10 percent in Q3 2021 after an 8.90 percent appreciation in Q2 2021.

On investment in FGN securities the value decreased by N252.24bn (2.98 percent) to N8.22trn as at 30 September 2021 from N8.47trn as at 30 June 2021. The report stated the value of investments in FGN securities was majorly due to matured investments in treasury bills deployed to other asset classes during the quarter.

FANAF 2022 Ordinary General Assembly comes up in May

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

The 2022 Ordinary General Assembly of the Federation of African National Insurance Companies (FANAF) will be held in two phases.

The first phase which includes the statutory assembly will be held on 24 February 2022 in Dakar. On the agenda of this first meeting: the approval of the financial statements for the fiscal year ending 31 December 2021 and the adoption of the budget for 2022. The work of the Executive Committee can be followed virtually.

The second phase will be devoted to the scientific aspect. It will be held from 23 to 25 May 2022 in Dakar. Participants will be able to attend either in person or virtually.

Dele Fajemirokun; Nigerian billionaire behind the popular Chicken Republic, AIICO Insurance

By admin

 

Chief Dele Fajemirokun.is one of Nigeria’s 100 top billionaires but he does blow his trumpet. The story of how he breathed life back into the ailing business his father left behind and then proceeded to make a name for himself in the industrial sector is one that provokes awe.

The funny thing though is that this is one businessman that refuses to admit to being one. He prefers instead to be described as “an economist or director of business”.

Growing up and education

Unlike the general thinking that he was born into wealth, Oladele Fajemirokun was one of four children born at a time his parents still lived in a one-room rented apartment in Isale Eko. He lived in this apartment with his parents, siblings and a couple of relatives, and the ‘less than desired living conditions’ created an early hunger to better his lot.

As a child, he was quite restive and earned the nickname “Dele Times, Dele Trouble”. He noted in his autobiography that his father once regretted not including “suicidal” as his middle name, but Dele choose to describe his behaviour at this time as having a “positively deviant approach to life”. In spite of this, he was an intelligent child and even his teachers admitted that his vices did not take away from his brain.

Dele attended Gboluji Grammar School, Ile Oluji, Ondo State, and got his B.Sc in Business Economics from the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University). He also bagged a Doctorate from the University of Los Angeles, USA.

Fajemirokun says that he probably picked up trading from both of his parents who were traders, and his educational background in Business Economics also played its part.

Breathing life back into his father’s business
Dele Fajemirokun was 28 when his father died and somehow, had to deal with the expectations that it was time to step into his father’s shoes. His scant experience in his father’s business did not do much for his confidence as he had only worked as a “sweeper” in his father’s warehouse and a “tally clerk” in his clearing & forwarding company while he was a student. Thanks to his late father’s excellent and accurate record-keeping practice, Dele was quick to catch up. His father’s deputy took over as the chairman and managing director, while Dele became the Group Executive Director (GED) of Henry Stephens Group, comprising about 19 companies.

Though many people thought that he wholly inherited the business, Dele only took on more responsibilities after his father’s demise. His first business challenge came when he came to the reality that behind the scene of his father’s huge wealth (as was publicly perceived), his father had used all but one of his properties in Nigeria to guarantee huge loan debts he had with First Bank and Union Bank. In the face of this challenge, Dele was able to negotiate an additional loan of N200,000 from First Bank under the leadership of Chief Samuel Asabia, and injected a “new lease of life” into the group, paying off all the debts within the next ten years. By this time, some of the companies in the groups had gone under but, the Henry Stephens group remained.

The shrewd ‘businessman

When the Nigerian federal government wanted to sell her shares in AIICO Insurance in the early 90s, Dele purchased the 11% stake in the company, making him the 2nd largest shareholder in the company after American Insurance Group (AIG). In this privatization exercise, the Federal Government did not want an individual or entity to get all of the shares, but Fajemirokun used 11 shelf companies to purchase 1% shares each and legally ended up with all of it.

He bid his time till about a decade later and purchased AIICO Bahamas’ 40% stake in the company, making him the largest shareholder in AIICO Insurance Plc. One noteworthy risk he took as Chairman of the board of AIICO Insurance, was using his main house as collateral to enable the company raise a draft of N650 million in 24 hours before the company’s license could be reissued by its regulator.

Dele Fajemirokun was one who would never let fear or anything get in the way of his business. At some time, he flew to war-torn Zagreb four or five times at the height of the Bosnia-Serbian war for business with “his personal supply of excellent whisky”. He has also had to weather through lots of business and personal challenges, in his journey of growing a multi-million dollar business.

Today, Dele Fajemirokun can be listed among Nigerian billionaires, and has interests and stakes in over forty enterprises in key sectors of the economy ranging from insurance to telecommunications, oil and gas, agriculture, and manufacturing.

In creating and growing his other businesses, Dele is known for taking advantage of his relationships and friendships from way back, to create outstanding business partnerships that minimises his risks in business and extends his rewards. Some of these companies are Aiico Insurance, Food Concepts and Entertainment (Chicken Republic/Butterfield Bakery), Johnson Wax (makers of Baygon & Raid insecticide), First Hydrocarbon Nigeria Ltd, Kings Guards Limited, FSS Gases, Multishield Limited, Xerox HS, Blue Chip Communications, DF Holdings Limited and many more.

In his autobiography, he recalled that the University of Ife was where he forged relationships with many friends who later became business partners. He described the friends/business partners as the “war council” and narrated how they casually purchased a plot of land without any clear idea of what to do with it, and fortune smiled on them when it snowballed into a high rise development in Banana Island.

A company approached them with a proposal to develop the land and offered to give them as owners of the land some units in the property once it was developed. That’s how Dele got a penthouse in the development when it was complete. No doubt, it is a business strategy that worked well for Fajemirokun and his friends.

Another thing that seems to be his style is building a business significantly and leaving the board while the ovation is loudest. A quick example of this is how he led Food Concepts Plc to establish over 60 chicken republic branches in Nigeria and Ghana as well nine bakeries, and then resigned from the board.

Becoming a billionaire

His autobiography – The makings of me – details more daring business ventures that he has embarked on over the years. One striking story is that of how he offered an American company, T-CAS, a bridging loan of N50,000 to stay afloat, but did this in exchange for 51% shareholding in the business and demanded that he be made the Executive Chairman. He then went on to stake his only piece of landed property as collateral to get the sum from the bank as a loan.

Shortly after, T-CAS was paid the millions of dollars it was owed by the Ministry of Communications, that had it struggling to stay afloat as a company. As majority shareholder, Fajemirokun got a whopping $11million. It almost sounds like a get-rich-quick scheme, yeah! but a legitimate one. His gamble on a company that had no guarantee of survival paid off. Overnight, Dele Fajemirokun became the billionaire he had always wanted to be and, at the young age of 29.

Other positions and interests

Outside his businesses, Fajemirokun has held various positions in the Nigeria Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was the 4th President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), the 6th President of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry and became the 1st President of the Federation of West African Chambers of Commerce.

He co-founded and became the founding President of the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) alongside Sir Adam Thomson, the then Chairman of British Caledonian Airways, now British Airways.

Fajemirokun has served as a member of the Board of Governors; as former President of Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC); and as the Vice-President, Federation of Commonwealth Chambers of Commerce.

Google in invest $1bn in Airtel India

By admin

 

Google has said it will invest a total of $1 billion in Indian telecom operator Airtel India as part of a $10 billion commitment to the country.

The new funding which will be in 2 tranches will see the first $700 million channelled to the acquisition of 1.28% stake in Airtel while the remaining $300 million will be used to explore multi-year commercial agreements with the telco.

The development will expectedly see the two firms work to expand Airtel’s offerings to cover a wide-range of Android-enabled devices to consumers’ innovative affordability programs.

What they are saying about the investment
Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Google and Alphabet, while speaking on the deal said, “Airtel is a leading pioneer shaping India’s digital future, and we are proud to partner on a shared vision for expanding connectivity and ensuring equitable access to the Internet for more Indians.

“Our commercial and equity investment in Airtel is a continuation of our Google for India Digitization Fund’s efforts to increase access to smartphones, enhance connectivity to support new business models, and help companies on their digital transformation journey.”

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman of Bharti Airtel, in a statement, “Airtel and Google share the vision to grow India’s digital dividend through innovative products. With our future ready network, digital platforms, last mile distribution and payments ecosystem, we look forward to working closely with Google to increase the depth and breadth of India’s digital ecosystem.”

Airtel, the second largest telecom operator in India has over 300 million subscribers and over 600 million internet users.
Nairametrics reported that Airtel Africa recently became the most capitalized company listed on the Nigerian stock exchange, surpassing Dangote Cement, the cement producing giant owned by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote.

FG advised to build infrastructure with crude oil surplus

 

As the price of crude oil in the international market continue to rise, the Federal Government should use the surplus to either reduce the budget deficit or use it to build infrastructure.

Chief Consultant of B. Adedipe Associates Limited, Dr. Biodun Adedipe, who made this assertion, noted that, government should also be responsible to its insurance needs.

Speaking at a media parley sponsored by Boff Insurance Brokers Limited and B. Adedipe Associates Limited, in Lagos, stated that the price of crude has been favourable to the economy.

Adedipe said: “the price of crude has been favourable to us. It is either you use the gain to reduce the deficit, or alternatively, you use that gain to build infrastructure, which ultimately will also increase government revenue.”

He also warned that the forthcoming election could create liquidity pressures in the economy as there will be too much money in circulation.

He said: “In pre election years, politicians spend a lot of money and that creates liquidity pressure. You have so much money circulating and that stands to put pressure on prices, so it will be expected this year that there will be inflationary pressure.”

Adedipe also decried the high volume of imports against exports in the
country.

To him, “In recent years, imports value in Nigeria had become far greater than exports. Yes we export crude oil, we export condensates, as well as associated gas. Inspite of that, we have been importing more than exporting and that has been creating employment for other countries to the detriment of our country.”

He was of the opinion that there is nothing wrong with borrowing, adding that, “but don’t borrow to buy food, don’t borrow for consumption, if you must borrow, borrow for anything that is investment in nature. We produce crude oil but don’t refine”

While speaking on the insurance sector, Adedipe said: “For the insurance sector to grow, government need also to be responsible to its insurance obligations which talks about paying premium. There also must be need for flexibility and also ensuring that compulsory insurance is enforced because enforcement had always been an issue.

“If the government is responsible and put a lot of effort into enforcement, then what we have today as compulsory insurance we can actually create more value from. And when insurance sector is vibrant, it will galvanize businesses and individuals to take risk and that is how economies grow.

“The freedom to take risk is on the back of a vibrant insurance sector, so the conversation should be how do we make that sector vibrant and that brings us to involve more interactions between government agencies and the insurance sector, so that all the stakeholders constantly are engaging and so whatever is needed to be done to make us deepen insurance, the government will keep making that happen.”

FAAN to expand General Aviation Terminal in Lagos

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

As part of efforts to improve on infrastructure and service delivery at the General Aviation Terminal, Lagos, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) is set to expand the Zulu wing of the terminal.

The expansion project, which will commence any moment from now, will only hamper passenger facilitation minimally at the terminal, as normal passenger check-in will not be affected in any way.

However, FAAN in a statement said the Protocol and VIP lounge at the terminal will be affected, as the facilities will be relocated temporarily till the end of the project, since major construction works will be carried out in that axis of the terminal.

Meanwhile, the Authority is already making arrangements for temporary spaces to be used as Protocol and VIP lounges, while the project is being executed.

When the expansion project is completed, the terminal would have been enhanced in terms of capacity, aesthetics and passenger comfort, as the expected and expanded new lounges will be twice what is presently on ground.

The Authority will like to appeal to passengers and other airport users to please be patient and bear with us for any inconvenience, while the project will last.

We will continue to give more updates on the project, as the need arises.

REGIC re-organises, makes new executive appointment

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

The Board of Royal Exchange General Insurance Company (REGIC) in the course of re-organing it’s stable, appointed thee new executive management staff to its leak.

They are Oyetunji Oshiyoye as Executive Director Business Development; Uyi Osagie as Chief Financial Officer and Alfred Tabiti as AGM/Head Retail & E-Business effective from January 2, 2022.

Oshiyoye with his extensive experience and knowledge of the insurance industry, will seek to drive the continuous growth and profitability of REGIC, while seeking new markets for the company as the head of Business Development. Osagie is charged with driving financial efficiency within REGIC and Tabiti as the Head of Retail will ensure REGIC becomes a major player in the retail insurance space within the next few years.

Furthermore, the company stated that these three appointments were done in order to ensure that REGIC continues to exploit the opportunities that abound in the general insurance space and ensure continued growth for the company, especially as it seeks to diversify its revenue streams.

Oshiyoye has over nineteen (19) years’ work experience garnered in the FMCG space before moving into the Insurance industry in Nigeria.

His forte includes sales management, business transformation and value chain optimization. Over the years, he has successfully developed and implemented cost effective business strategies which in-turn, increased company productivity and profits.

Oshiyoye joined Allianz Nigeria Insurance Plc in 2014, holding several positions including: Group Head Retail Channel Group, Chief Retail Sales and Marketing Officer, Chief Operations Officer and finally became the Chief Customer Officer in 2021.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in Geophysics from University of Lagos and an MBA (Leadership and Sustainability) from the University of Cumbria, UK.

While Osagie has over thirteen (13) years hand-on experience in Consulting, Financial Reporting, Business Strategy Formulation, Investment Management, Treasury Operations, Risk Management, Credit Control, as well as Budgetary Control and Audit Services. His career experience cuts across the Financial Sector including Insurance, Banking, Asset Management, Pension and Real Estate.

In 2015, Uyi joined Allianz Nigeria Insurance Plc from Axa Mansard as the Chief Financial Officer with responsibility for the financial management of the company, regulatory oversight, internal control and investment operations before leaving to join Heirs Insurance in 2021 as a Chief Financial Officer.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. He is a Chartered Accountant, Associate member of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, Member of the Chartered Institute of Insurance of Nigeria (CIIN) and an Associate member of the Nigerian Institute of Safety Professionals.

Likewise, Tabiti has over thirteen (13) years’ work experience in Sales, Product Development, Channel Management, Recruitment, Training, and Partner Acquisition at various levels. Most of these years of cognate work experience were spent in the Insurance Industry.

He began his professional career with Equity Life Insurance Company Limited in 2006 and in 2008, he joined AXA-Mansard Insurance Plc, as a Senior Bancassurance Associate, rising to become a District Manager in 2013.

In 2015, he left AXA-Mansard to join Ensure Insurance Plc (Now Allianz Nigeria Insurance Plc) where he worked in different capacities as Head Bancassurance, Area Sales Manager, Head Retail Sales and Head Bancassurance Nigeria (Retail Distribution Channels). Later, he moved from Allianz Nigeria Insurance Plc to join Avon HMO in 2021 as a Business Manager responsible for sales, retention, and business growth of the company’s SME/Retail business portfolio.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from University of Ado-Ekiti and a host of other professional certifications.