July 28, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka's life insurance sector grew 13.9 percent taking in gross written premiums of 23.6 billion rupees in 2008, a year that saw high inflation, a report by the industry regulator, Insurance Board of Sri Lanka (IBSL) said.
Ceylinco Insurance Life, a unit of Sri Lanka's troubled Ceylinco Group, has grown 20.5 percent beating the sector's growth of 13.9 percent in the 2008 financial year.
Ceylinco's market share in life insurance business has increased to almost 35 percent. In 2007 its market share was 33 percent.
The net premium income for life insurance business was 8.25 billion rupees in 2008.
Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation (SLIC) was in second place and with gross written premiums flat at 4.49 billion rupees.
SLIC's market share in 2008 had shrunk to 19 percent, from 21.6 percent in 2007.
Premiums of Eagle Insurance, the Sri Lankan unit of Aviva, grew 14.6 percent to 4.34 billion rupees.
BSL said premium collections of 11 out of 14 registered life insurance companies have grown below the industry average of 13.9 percent in 2008.
Janashakthi Insurance grew 20.8percent to 1.33 billion rupees, while Asian Alliance Insurance grew almost 9.0 percent to 970.0 million rupees.
HNB Assurance, a unit of Hatton National Bank, grew 19.1 percent to 914.1 million rupees.
The annual report said in 2008, six insurance companies grew less than one percent.
In 2008 Ceylinco Life's asset base grew 24.5 percent to 24.14 billion rupees, while SLIC's life asset base expanded 42.05 percent to 42.1 billion rupees.
Eagle Insurance's life portfolio asset base grew 12.6 percent to 15.0 billion rupees, while Union Assurance asset base grew 8.4 percent to 8.56 billion rupees.
Janashakthi Insurance life asset base expanded by 5.2 percent to 2.34 billion rupees, the IBSL annual report said.
The insurance sector asset bases are riding high on the back of high interest rates offered on government securities in 2008.
However the life insurance sector is reeling from lapses, which have been going up steadily in the last five years.
Reference : LBO
