Gross direct premium income of general insurance companies grew 19.4% year-on-year in May, with private players continuing to report higher growth compared with their public sector peers, data from the General Insurance Council showed.
In May, the general insurance industry saw gross premium income at R8,267.45 crore, against R6,923.96 crore in May last year. Private insurers’ gross premium income stood at R3,510.24 crore, up by 22% compared with the year-ago period. Public sector companies witnessed a Y-o-Y growth of 17.2% at R4,250.99 crore in May.
In the last few months, private players continued to perform better than public sector insurers. Market participants say despite profits made by public sector general insurers, their high combined ratio might spoil valuations if they plan to list.
