Dubai: Abu Dhabi National Insurance Co. (ADNIC) saw gross written premium during 2022 grow an impressive 20.1 per cent to Dh5.13 billion – but net profit for the year came in lower at Dh377.9 million from Dh401.8 million. The reason for the profit dip, the company says, has to do with the market softening.
This softening is happening ‘across various products after some rating discipline in the recent past in commercial sector’, ADNIC said in a statement. The Abu Dhabi firm is one of the most systemically important players in its category.
But the gains on gross premiums will give fresh impetus. At Dh5.13 billion, it is also the highest the company the achieved to date. This makes for a ‘significant accomplishment and new milestone for the company,” said Sheikh Mohamed Bin Saif Al Nahyan, Chairman. “This achievement was driven by outstanding growth in the commercial division by 38.2 per cent and maintaining the position in the consumer division despite being under significant price pressure and facing aggressive competition.”
Pressure point
One area where the company took a dent was on the investment income side. “Investment Income in 2022 was impacted by extreme market volatility seen in all asset classes, including fixed income,” said a statement. “However, the portfolio performed strongly in the fourth quarter of 2022, enabling a recovery in Investment Income to Dh144.2 million.”
According to Ahmad Idris, CEO, “Despite uncertainties in the global economy and inflation on the horizon, ADNIC’s results demonstrated our ability to successfully navigate the market and we have continued to invest in a number of key strategic areas.”
Normalising numbers
“ADNIC’s loss ratios continue to be stable even though economic activity has normalised,” said Sheikh Mohamed in the statement. “The commercial division demonstrated solid underwriting performance despite aggressive growth, and our underwriting profit grew by 13.8 per cent in comparison to the prior year. The consumer division performance has stabilised after returning to pre-pandemic levels and delivered solid results contributing 34 per cent of the total company net underwriting income.”
