Lidwala maintains 2nd spot in short-term insurance

MBABANE – Lidwala Insurance has maintained its position as the second-largest player in Eswatini’s short-term insurance (STI) sector despite a year-on-year decline in market share.

This is according to the Financial Services Regulatory Authority’s (FSRA) latest quarterly bulletin for Q1 2025.

The bulletin reveals that Lidwala ended the quarter with a gross written premiums (GWP) market share of 32.71 per cent, reflecting a 3.74 percentage point drop from the same period in 2024. Despite this dip, the company continued to demonstrate operational resilience, supported by improved loss ratios and profitability metrics.

In terms of asset share, Lidwala retained second position at 22.38 per cent, even though this marked a 2.31 percentage point decline on a quarterly basis. ESRIC dominated with 64.74 per cent, posting a marginal 0.53 per cent quarterly increase, while Oracle, Phoenix, Medscheme and United General accounted for the remaining sector shares.

The FSRA bulletin shows that ESRIC maintained its position as market leader despite a notable 11.77 percentage point decline in GWP market share, ending the quarter at 40.82 per cent. On a year-on-year basis, however, ESRIC showed remarkable resilience, recording only a marginal 0.50 per cent decline.

Oracle ranked third at 13.00 per cent, achieving a 4.05 percentage point increase year-on-year, while Phoenix and Medscheme followed at 5.97 per cent and 5.83 per cent, respectively. Both insurers registered moderate gains, with Phoenix improving by 0.42 per cent and Medscheme by 1.13 per cent year-on-year.

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Assets rise by 27.16 per cent to E1.48bn

MBABANE – The sector’s total assets rose 27.16 per cent year-on-year to E1.48 billion, though a marginal 0.70 per cent quarterly decline was recorded from Q4 2024.

Growth was driven by:

Investment assets and cash: Up 23.20 per cent, accounting for 49.86 per cent of total assets.

Reinsurance receivables: Up 58.51 per cent, making up 11.51 per cent.

Property, plant and equipment: up 21.89 per cent, contributing 9.68 per cent.

On the liabilities side, total obligations increased by 35.38 per cent year-on-year to E773.84 million, with insurance liabilities and technical provisions accounting for 68.62 per cent of the total.

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Net income edges up by 35%

MBABANE – The short-term insurance (STI) sector’s net income after tax grew by 35.01 per cent year-on-year to E36.73 million, supported by a 26.21 per cent rise in underwriting profit to E31.84 million.

Net underwriting results stood at E91.86 million, a 19.84 per cent increase year-on-year, indicating that core insurance operations remain the primary source of profitability.

The sector’s claims ratio declined slightly by 0.40 percentage points to 39.07 per cent, while the combined ratio was recorded at 80.80 per cent and the profitability ratio at 22.14 per cent, underscoring strong operational efficiency.

The FSRA report further highlighted that brokers remain the dominant distribution channel, contributing 75.58 per cent of total premiums.

Direct business rose by 3.73 percentage points to 18.40 per cent, while corporate agents and individual agents accounted for 4.09 per cent and 1.93 per cent, respectively.

This distribution structure reflects the continued importance of intermediaries in linking insurers with policyholders and facilitating market growth.

*Full article available in our publication.