By Bisi Bamishe
Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc (CHI) recorded 45% increase in Profit Before Taxation from N971.6m in 2021 to N1.407 billion in 2022. Profit After Taxation also grew by 26% from N790.6 million in 2021 to N995.98 million in 2022.
Chairman, Board of Directors of CHI, Obinna Ekezie made this known at the 28th Annual General Meeting of the company held today in Lagos.
Addressing the shareholders, he said “During the 2022 Financial Year, your company once again braved all odds in the operating environment and is posting improved results in its top and bottom lines. The results are an all-time high”.
“They show a growth of 22% in Gross Premium Written, from N 10,500,388,477 in 2021 to N12,826,865,218 in 2022. Total Assets of the company was not left out in the impressive performance. Total Assets is now N18,540,741,526 when compared with the N15,674,166,226 of 2021”, he said.
The group managing director of CHI, Eddie Efekoha disclosed that through prudent underwriting, the company was able to grow its underwriting profit by 24% to N2.367 billion in 2022 from the N1.915 bn in 2021.
Noting that claims payment remains an integral part of CHI operations, he added “We do not renege on the prompt payment of all genuine and fully documented claims. We expended N4.468 billion on claims in 2022 when compared with the N3.999 billion claims expenses in 2021”.
According to Efekoha, out of this amount, CHI was able to recover N1.869 billion from its partners due to the robust reinsurance arrangement within and outside the continent.
He stated further that, the company’s Investment Income rose marginally by 15% from N1.202 billion in 2021 to N1.377 billion in 2022.
“Our share price on the trading floor of the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) was also positively impacted, a show of investor confidence in our operations. Trading on the floor as CHI PLC, attained a 52-week high of 0.75k on 7th July, 2022 way above its recent rights issue price of 52k. It has since stabilised above 60k.
“On a positive note, the horizon looks bright as a plethora of factors point to a robust growth in insurance operations. We are optimistic of a more aggressive penetration of insurance services with technology”, he said.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives across member companies have continued to gain traction, accordingt to the group managing director. Worthy of mention is the maiden edition of the Hallmark HMO Stakeholders Engagement in 2022, which drew key participants from the health sector. The company is also being identified annually with its blood donation drive by enriching the blood bank of the foremost tertiary health institution, the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) to safe life.
Also, CHI Annual Essay Competition for students offering insurance and actuarial science in tertiary institutions, its flagship CSR initiative has continued to attract entries from students across institutions of higher learning in different geo-political zones of the country.
Efekoha stressed, “We remain committed to the growth of research and development of quality education, a Strategic Development Goal objective of the United Nations”.
