Durrant Pate/Contributor

General Accident Insurance Company (Genac) is seeing improved investment income, as a result of interest rates trending upwards during its June 2023 quarter.

This comes at a time when the Jamaica-based insurance company incurred increased reinsurance costs in all territories in which it operates, as a result of a contraction of capacity. Genac achieved an after-tax profit of J$246.3 million compared to J$40.8 million for the prior year.

Insurance revenues closed on J$5.3 billion, up from the J$3.9 billion posted for the comparative period in 2022. Pre-tax profit grew to J$305.6 million, up from J$89.7 million in 2022.

Earnings per share for the quarter closed on J$0.22 compared to J$0.07 while total assets rose to J$9.4 billion from J$8.7 billion in 2022.

Insurance service results

There has been a more than doubling of earnings from insurance services with J$323.4 million compared to J$110 million for the comparative quarter in 2022. All territories saw increased insurance contract revenues.

Genac continues to receive positive results from its Barbados and Trinidad markets, resulting in increased insurance revenues by 57 per cent and 37 per cent respectively over the prior year. The company’s core operation returned a positive net insurance result contribution of $323.4 million.

The operations continue to be impacted by increased claim costs, mainly due to claims inflation. Genac’s consolidated investment income for the quarter closed on J$131.7 million compared to the prior period of J$146.0 million with investment income benefiting from interest rates trending upwards.

According to the management, “we expect to see continued improved investment income return as the leadership team continues to efficiently deploy capital to maximise investment returns. Our outlook continues to be positive despite the contraction in the supply of reinsurance capacity. “

Renewing reinsurance contracts

Genac, through its deep relationship with reinsurers, was able to renew its reinsurance contracts across all markets. The company expects this market availability will continue for the remainder of the year, allowing it to leverage its growth prospects.

The management is “anticipating that as the year progresses, the increase in premium will produce an even higher return for our shareholders as we remain focussed on executing on our key strategic objectives. As of June 2023, General Accident remains in compliance with the capital adequacy and liquidity metrics prescribed by the Financial Services Commission, in Jamaica, Barbados, and Trinidad.”

The company remains focused on cementing our market leadership in Jamaica, growing its operations in Trinidad and Barbados, and placing technology at the core of its operations.