London, 2 June 2026 – Africa Specialty Risks (“ASR”), the developing markets-focused (re)insurance group, today announces it has entered into an agreement for a strategic investment by London-headquartered Vitruvian Partners (“Vitruvian”), an international investment firm.
In partnership with Vitruvian, ASR will continue to realise its mission of enabling sustainable economic development by fulfilling unmet insurance needs. ASR is to be the reinsurance platform of choice for developing markets by providing additional new speciality lines and solutions, access to global A-rated capacity, advanced technology capabilities, expanded underwriting at Lloyd’s, and geographic expansion outside of Africa and the Middle East.
Founded in 2020, with its first policy issued in 2021, ASR is a leading developing market focused (re)insurance group that also operates Syndicate 2454, the only dedicated growth economy Syndicate at Lloyd’s, along with reinsurers in Bermuda and Mauritius.
ASR has doubled its premium base every year since inception, having de-risked over $60bn of risks throughout over 90 countries in developing markets, while providing policies in all 54 African countries, all of the Middle East, select CIS states, the Indian subcontinent and South East Asia. The group is forecast to write approximately $0.5bn in gross written premiums (GWP) in 2026.
ASR primarily writes facultative reinsurance across property, casualty and specialty classes, as well as direct insurance, especially Political Risk and Trade Credit, where it is a leader at de-risking investment into Africa.
The group operates a unique distribution model, allowing it to access risks both on the ground in-country as well as in global wholesale markets. The company also writes treaty reinsurance and provides parametric and captive solutions for corporate clients. ASR24-7, an automated underwriting platform, was launched in 2025 and offers automatic quote and binding capabilities for standardised risks.
The company has offices in London, Bermuda, Mauritius, Dubai, Morocco and South Africa, with new hubs in East and West Africa soon to open alongside offices in India, Asia and Latin America.
The company was founded by Mikir Shah in 2020, and since inception has been majority owned by Helios Investment Partners, the largest Africa-focused private investment firm.
Commenting on the strategic investment, Mikir Shah, Chief Executive Officer, Africa Specialty Risks said:
“I’m delighted to welcome Vitruvian Partners as our new lead investor. Since launch in 2020, ASR has enjoyed a significant growth trajectory, and this new partnership will help us realise our ambition to be the go-to reinsurer for developing markets. I want to thank Helios Investment Partners who have been a supportive partner for ASR since inception and have helped us realise the fantastic growth we’ve achieved in five years.
“I look forward to working closely with Vitruvian and continuing our next phase of growth as we continue to enable sustainable economic development by fulfilling unmet insurance needs.”
Tassilo Arnhold, Partner at Vitruvian commented:
“We are delighted to be partnering with Mikir and the broader ASR team, who have built an impressive business to date by solving a critical and increasing (re)insurance gap in developing markets. We look forward to working with ASR to further expand across various product lines and across developing market regions globally.”
Jamie Hollins, Partner at Helios Investment Partners, added:
“ASR exemplifies Helios’ strategy of partnering with outstanding founders to build market-leading platforms that address critical gaps in African and developing market ecosystems. In just five years, Mikir and the ASR team have scaled the business at an exceptional pace, combining underwriting discipline, technological innovation and global reach.
“We are proud to have supported ASR from launch and are confident that Vitruvian’s partnership will accelerate the company’s ambition to scale internationally and broaden its solutions for clients across developing markets.”
The transaction is expected to close later this year, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
Terms of the transaction have not been publicly disclosed.
Media Enquiries
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Katie Hopkins, Kuba Stawiski
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Notes to Editors
About Africa Specialty Risks
Africa Specialty Risks (ASR) is enabling sustainable economic development by fulfilling unmet insurance needs. Our platform provides local underwriting expertise, an unparalleled distribution network and access to global capacity.
Founded in the heart of Africa and with offices across the continent and the Middle East, we provide regional market knowledge, data insights, and technical proficiency for capital partners who are looking to increase their presence in growth markets.
We also participate on each and every risk we underwrite with balance sheets in Bermuda, Mauritius and through Syndicate 2454 at Lloyd’s. ASR is committed to accelerating business growth by providing customised service and innovative insurance products to enable development. Learn more at www.ASR-Re.com
About Vitruvian Partners
Vitruvian Partners is a global growth-focused investor with offices across London, Stockholm, Munich, Madrid, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Singapore, Shanghai, Miami, and San Francisco. Vitruvian focuses on growth buyouts and growth capital transactions. It has a unique dynamic situations investment strategy that it operates across multiple sectors that includes financial services, information technology, life sciences & healthcare and business services. Vitruvian Funds have backed over 100 companies and have assets under management of over $20bn. Notable investments include CFC Underwriting, IFGL, Wise, Thunes, Marqeta, Just Eat, Arrive, Darktrace and Bitdefender. Further information can be found at www.vitruvianpartners.com.
About Helios Investment Partners
Established in 2004, Helios Investment Partners is the largest Africa-focused private investment firm, with a record that spans creating start-ups to providing expanding companies with growth capital and expertise. The firm is led and managed by a predominantly African team based in London, Paris, Lagos and Nairobi, with the language skills and cultural affinity to engage with local entrepreneurs, managers and intermediaries on the continent. Helios leverages its local and global networks to create attractive proprietary investment opportunities, with an emphasis on building market leaders in core economic sectors and driving performance through a highly engaged approach to portfolio operations. The firm’s unique combination of a deep knowledge of the African operating environment, a singular commitment to the region and a proven capability to manage complexity, is reflected in its diverse portfolio of growing, market-leading businesses and its position as a partner of choice in Africa. Helios is the second mainstream private equity firm globally, and the largest emerging markets-focused private equity firm, to receive B Corp certification. B Corp status recognizes the firm’s long-standing commitment to sustainability and responsible business practices.