Niger Insurance Plc has unveiled a five-year growth and transformation plan to revamp its operations for excellent service delivery and competitiveness in a rapidly changing business environment.
This was even as the company said it paid over N1.4 billion claims to customers in the past nine months while promising that other unsettled claims will be paid soonest.
Speaking at a recent press conference in Lagos, the Managing Director, Niger Insurance, Mr Edwin Igbiti, said the transformation blueprint over the next five years (2020 to 2024), focuses on operational and technological advancements in delivering bespoke insurance solutions to businesses, institutions and the growing populace of Nigerians.
Igbiti revealed that the need for the company’s transformation was underscored by a combination of market and regulatory changes.
According to him, the implementation of the transformation plan already began in the fourth quarter of 2019 following his appointment. According to him, the three pillars of the plan are; strengthening the firm’s balance sheet; strengthening its people and strengthening its business model.
He added that in order to ensure a successful execution of this plan, the company recently reconstituted a new board of directors, a new management team and an array of strategic partnerships.
“At its 49th AGM which held on November 21, 2019, the company’s shareholders approved its recapitalisation plan to meet the new regulatory capital requirements through an equity capital raise via rights issue and/or private placement and a business combination by way of merger or acquisition, which must all be completed by 30 June, 2020,” Igbiti said.
Responding to the issues of unpaid claims and outstanding customer benefits, he expressed regret and attributed the delay to the company’s large asset portfolio which is skewed towards fixed assets.
He however assured customers that the company’s assets are more than sufficient to settle all its liabilities and that it has made significant progress towards liquidating some fixed assets to unlock cash and pay all outstanding obligations soon.
Commenting on the company’s financial position, the new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the firm, Mr Ademola Salami, said “Working with our financial advisers, the board and management of the company are already engaging with foreign and local investors that have shown interest in the company. High-level negotiations are on-going and we expect to secure substantive offers for investment in the coming weeks.”