London, 17 November 2022: Africa Specialty Risks (“ASR”, the “Group”), the pan-African focused (re)insurance group, is pleased to announce that ASR has entered into a partnership agreement with Société Centrale de Réassurance (“SCR”), the leading reinsurer in Morocco.
ASR and SCR will be combining capacities to write multi-business line coverage across Africa and the Middle East, with the joint capacity being led by the ASR team outside of Morocco for a proportion of SCR’s capacity. ASR’s partnership with SCR reflects a mutual mission to develop and accelerate an international presence across the African and Middle Eastern (re)insurance markets. Underpinning the value of organisations in emerging economies to access the correct risk mitigation insurance covers from initial investment through construction to operation.
SCR was established in 1960 by an agreement between the Moroccan State and the Caisse de Dépôt et de Gestion, a majority shareholder. SCR maintains its leading national re-insurance position in Morocco with over 50% market share of ceded premium, while simultaneously developing an international footprint supported by its representative offices in Rwanda, Egypt, Côte d’Ivoire and South Africa. SCR has more than 500 clients worldwide and operates in 70 markets.
ASR was established in August 2020 focused on providing bespoke risk mitigation solutions to the African Corporate and Specialty market. Since February 2021, ASR has written business in 47 African countries through a range of business lines, including Political Risk Insurance & Trade Credit, Political Violence and Terrorism, Property, Energy, Construction, Liability and Parametric. In 2022, ASR extended its geographic coverage to the Middle East. ASR has offices in the United Kingdom and Mauritius and a presence in Kenya.
Mikir Shah, CEO of Africa Specialty Risks, commented:
“Partnering with SCR is an exciting time for ASR as the Group continues to protect the African continent from a range of risks, while simultaneously extending our presence and expertise in the Middle East. The partnership increases the protection we can provide to international and other African organisations. We look forward to working with SCR, the continent’s first Arab reinsurer and second largest African reinsurer and continuing our work in filling the insurance gap in Africa and the Middle East.”
Youssef Fassi Fihri, CEO of SCR, commented:
“The partnership with ASR is a testament to our 2021-2023 strategic plan “We Transform Tomorrow Together” and reflects our commitment to strengthening the positioning of SCR internationally while partnering with likeminded business partners.”
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Media Enquiries
Mikir Shah, CEO
Bryan Howett, CFO
Heather Armstrong
Tim Pearson
Charlie Baister
asr@tavistock.co.uk
Notes to Editors
About ASR
Africa Specialty Risks (ASR) provides comprehensive risk transfer solutions through high quality underwriting to local and global customers across the African continent, giving them the confidence to grow their businesses sustainably.
ASR works proactively with local regulators to develop skills and provide training to local underwriters. Environmental, social, and governance considerations are central to ASR’s values, particularly in relation to local capacity building.
ASR is backed by Helios Investment Partners’ Fund IV and benefits from their extensive reach across Africa, as well as their knowledge and experience in our key markets.
Africa Specialty Risks Ltd. is an Appointed Representative of Crispin Speers & Partners Ltd. We operate as a Managing General Agent sourcing world leading capacity for African insurance and reinsurance risk. We are a proud member of the MGA Association.
About SCR
SCR remains a pioneer as a key reinsurance player in Africa with a continuous performance over the last 5 years (a stable average ROE of 11.5%) and a solvency margin in European standard S2 of 188.8% in 2021. Also, SCR has managed to demonstrate its resilience despite a difficult context marked by the COVID crisis both in Africa and at the international level, by maintaining its rating of B++ (Good) by AM Best and AAA STABLE by Fitch (local rating). Recently, SCR has distinguished itself by the quality of its management and its overall performance by earning the award of “Best Reinsurer in Africa for the year 2021”, the highest distinction granted annually by the International Business magazine – Finance category. With this award, SCR once again confirms its financial strength and anchors its development at the local and regional level.