Khalifa Abdulla Turki Al Subaey Chairman & Managing Director of QIC Group
Doha: Qatar Insurance Company (QIC), the leading insurer in Qatar and the Middle East North African (Mena) region, has reported a net profit of QR351m for the first half (H1) of the year, a 277 percent increase compared to a loss of QR198m for the same period in 2020.
Following a meeting of the Board of Directors yesterday, which was presided over by Chairman & Managing Director of QIC Group, Khalifa Abdulla Turki Al Subaey, the Board has approved the company’s financial results for H1 2021.
During the event, Al Subaey stressed that increasing the return per share (EPS) and effectively contributing to the growth of the national economy remains the Group’s first goal and that the company’s continuous growth at a steady pace is through successful implementation of the strategy set by the board of directors in line with the Qatar National Vision
2030.
He added: “We are pleased with these results, which were achieved through the successful implementation of the group’s strategic plan that aims to de-risk its international operations, expand its low-volatility activities, diversify its business portfolio and drive forward full fledge digitisation of the Group’s domestic and Mena operations. This achievement is a testament to the strength of our brand.”
Group Chief Executive Officer at QIC, Salem Khalaf Al Mannai, said that the Group’s gross written premium for the six-month period remained stable at QR6.5bn. International operations continued to achieve improved rate to exposure across the company’s portfolio’s and the faster than projected re-opening of the global market was reflected by increasing ultimate claims ratios. In the first half of 2021, QIC’s international operations – Qatar Re, Antares, QIC Europe Limited (QEL) and its Gibraltar-based carriers - generated a premium volume of QR5bn, accounting for approximately 77 percent of the Group’s total gross written premiums (GWP).
“QIC once again witnessed a strong performance from its primary insurance business in its domestic and Mena operations, which continued to grow to GWP of QR1.5bn, an increase of 10 percent from H1 2020 on account of the increase across all major business lines arising from rate increases, new business opportunities and growth in existing accounts,” Al Mannai added.
In H1 2021, QIC’s investment income amounted to QR567m compared to QR98m for the first half of 2020, demonstrating the Group’s exceptional asset management expertise.
“The Group also continued to benefit from its steady efforts to further strengthen its operational efficiency through automation and digitisation with a healthy administrative expense ratio of 7 percent for H1 2021,” said Al Mannai.
Recently, QIC was ranked top insurance company in the Middle East in Forbes Middle East Magazine’s annual ranking of top 100 listed companies in the region for 2021. The prestigious ranking features the region’s biggest, most valuable and profitable companies. QIC was also ranked the fifth most valuable brand locally for 2021 by the global agency Brand Finance in its list for the 10 strongest brands in the Qatari market with the value of its trademark amounting to $535m.
The strict criteria of evaluation examined and measured the strength of assets, global reputation, market share, profitability with the volume of operations, and geographical spread, as these factors affect the strength of any financial institution and how each of its clients, shareholders, and dealers perceive it in the markets in which it operates.
The evaluation mechanism examined QIC’s financial data. While revenues and performance levels were evaluated according to financial results, a five-year forecast period and expected future growth.
