|
|
 |
 |
| Sunday, 02 March 2003 |
 |
|
 |
Business |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Commendable performance from Ceylinco Insurance Ceylinco Insurance Co Ltd has recorded a premium income of Rs 4.967 billion for the year ended December 31, 2002. This comprises the premium income of Rs 2.3 billion achieved by Life Insurance and the Non-Life premium income of Rs 2.6 billion. The company has achieved a profit of Rs 221.9 million, a growth of more than 50 per cent over last year, which is commendable, said Director Technical Jagath De Alwis. "We have been able to maintain leadership status in both Life and Non-Life insurance. We are also the biggest composite private insurance company in the SAARC region," he said. Ceylinco Insurance has recorded a 22.5 per cent growth in turnover. The growth in General Insurance is Rs 700 million or 37.5 per cent. The company enjoys a market share of 22.5 per cent in this sector. This is remarkable, considering the severe challenges experienced by the industry globally including competition, stiff reinsurance regulations due to the September 11 incident in USA and the increasing expenses people have to bear when purchasing a policy. De Alwis said that despite investment income being affected by the reduction in interest rates, the company has been able increase the Non-Life Insurance reserves to one billion rupees, a growth of about 48.5 per cent over the previous year. The long-term insurance fund of the company has increased to Rs 6.871 billion from Rs 5.214 billion. "Today, we have the strongest Life Fund and are maintaining solvency margins which are well ahead of the requirements stipulated by the Insurance Board of Sri Lanka. Our solvency margin is on par with international requirements." Ceylinco Insurance has an international presence and is a flag bearer for Sri Lanka. He said that as our country is open for multinational companies, "we are competing with them not only nationally, but internationally as well". Ceylinco Insurance presently has representative offices in Maldives and manages companies in Nepal, Bangladesh and Mauritius. "We are managing them with the intention of investing in the future once we obtain the necessary clearance from the authorities," he added. De Alwis attributed the continuous growth of the company to its large network of branches, catering to every segment of society. Ceylinco has 70 branches engaged in Life business and 50 branches engaged in Non-Life while many of its products cater to the requirements of the rural population as well. "We are the only insurance company presently doing crop and livestock insurance. This has given us the advantage of moving to villages," he said. "The company has shown the real value of insurance to the farming community with fast claim settlement which has made their lives much easier." The fastest moving policies at the moment are the Ceylinco VIP and Ceylinco One Day Insurance, which is more popular among users of public transport and daily wage earners. The company has invested money in sectors such as health care, education and Board of Investment projects including communication and housing, which it believes, is a contribution towards economic development. It is also engaged in community projects. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
