Equity Group is currently piloting its insurance services in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as part of a strategic plan to expand its insurance offerings across its regional markets. The lender, which has already introduced life insurance in Kenya with over 11.5 million policies as of May 2024, aims to gather valuable insights from the DRC pilot before launching insurance services in other subsidiaries, including Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, and Rwanda.
“Through a local partnership in the DRC starting in March 2024, we have begun distributing risk products. As we progress, you will likely see an increased presence of our insurance business in other regional markets by 2025 and beyond,” stated Angela Okinda, Managing Director and Principal Officer of Equity Life Assurance, during a recent shareholders’ meeting.
Equity Group’s first insurance subsidiary began operations in March 2022, focusing on life insurance products. By March 2024, the unit marked its second anniversary, reporting Ksh20.8 billion in total assets and a pre-tax profit of Ksh321 million, reflecting a 106 percent increase from Ksh156 million in the same quarter the previous year. Insurance service revenues also rose by 40 percent to Ksh508 million, up from Ksh364 million in the same period last year.
Equity Group is targeting high-growth insurance segments such as deposit administration and pensions, individual life assurance, and group credit life. The company is also poised to capitalize on the low average insurance penetration rates in East Africa and the broader continent, where few insurance companies have achieved significant success.
Additionally, Equity Group shareholders recently approved the creation of a new health insurance subsidiary under Equity Group Insurance Holdings Limited, which already manages the group’s life and general insurance businesses. The lender plans to introduce new general insurance products in Kenya in the latter half of 2024.
Equity Group CEO James Mwangi highlighted the strategic importance of the insurance business in diversifying the company’s product offerings and supporting regional expansion. “The insurance business has performed as anticipated. During challenging times, insurance has shown resilience compared to banking. In our first nine months of operations, we achieved a return of 54 percent on equity, which increased to 68 percent in 12 months, despite our balance sheet growing fourfold. Insurance is less sensitive to interest expenses, confirming the benefits of our diversified product portfolio,” Mwangi noted.
Equity Group now operates across multiple sectors, including banking, insurance, and financial technology, positioning itself as a comprehensive financial services provider in the region.
