Integrated financial services firm, Britam Holdings Plc, has today posted a Kshs 4.82 billion profit before tax for the year ended 31 December 2023, a sixty-five percent increment from the Kshs 2.92 billion recorded in the previous financial year ended 31 December 2022.
The improved performance is attributable to a growth in top line revenue from both insurance and investment activities, which has cushioned the business from fair value losses incurred from fixed income securities.
The Group’s insurance revenue increased to Shs 36.4 billion, reflecting a remarkable 41% increase from Shs 25.8 billion in 2022. This growth was primarily driven by significant growth in both the Kenya insurance businesses as well as the general insurance regional business which contributed 29% of the insurance revenue in the year.
The Group’s total insurance revenue and fund management fees was up 40 percent to Kshs 37.1 billion from Kshs 26.4 billion in 2022. Of this amount the international businesses generated Kshs 10.6 billion, accounting for 29 percent of the total insurance business revenue. The international businesses remain a key pillar of the Group’s geographical diversification strategy.
Kenya businesses delivered a pre-tax profit of Kshs 3.4 billion while the regional businesses contributed Kshs 1.4 billion to the Group’s pre-tax profit, accounting for 29 percent.
The insurance businesses recorded improved underwriting performance mainly driven by profitable topline growth and claims management.
Meanwhile, net investment income grew to Kshs 11.61 billion from 11.32 billion. The growth in the investment portfolio returns was driven by the ongoing realignment of the portfolio with the objective of growing and stabilizing yields.
The Group’s balance sheet remains robust, with total equity increasing to Shs. 25.69 billion from Shs. 22.16 billion in the previous year. This improvement in equity highlights the Group’s strengthened financial position and underscores its ability to weather economic uncertainties.
The year under review marks the third year of the Group’s implementation of its five-year strategic plan for the period 2021-2025. The positive outcome achieved during the year is a clear indication that the Group’s customer-centric strategy is yielding significant benefits. This strategy prioritizes the enhancement of customer value and experience, expansion of the customer base to drive growth, and improvement of efficiencies to generate better returns.
Commenting on the Group’s financial performance, Britam’s Group MD & CEO Mr. Tom Gitogo said:
“We are confident of the growth and performance trend that Britam has achieved, supported by its subsidiaries in Kenya and in the region. The business continues to grow its revenues while operating costs grow at a lower rate than the topline growth.”
Mr. Gitogo added “Continued focus on customer-centric transformation continues to grow our customer numbers and drive the uptake of our products, especially through our emerging market consumers, partnerships and digital channels.”
The Group’s profitability has however been impacted by fair-value losses on investment assets, especially on its fixed-income instruments. This is attributed to the challenging macroeconomic environment which has been characterized by rising yields.
Supported by its strong brand position, Britam remains focused on seizing the growth opportunities across its footprint, innovating despite the low penetration of insurance products, and driving financial literacy.
“Looking ahead, we remain committed to driving sustainable growth and enhancing shareholder value through the continued execution of our strategic roadmap,” said Mr. Gitogo.
IFRS 17 Adoption
Britam successfully implemented the International Financial Reporting Standard 17 (IFRS 17), effective from 1 January 2023. Building upon this milestone, the Company integrated the principles of IFRS 17 into our financial reporting framework, ensuring compliance and transparency in our disclosures.
The adjustments arising from the IFRS 17 implementation have been made to the opening net assets as of 1 January 2022. The comparative financial information has also been restated as required by IFRS 17.
The implementation of IFRS 17 has not significantly impacted the business strategy, operations, cash generation, solvency, or dividend policy. Instead, it has primarily influenced the Group’s reporting and the emergence of profits, particularly from its long-term insurance contracts. The Contractual Service Margin, representing the value of future unearned profits on such contracts, is systematically amortized into profits over time, thereby fostering long-term stability in profit emergence
Dividend
The Board of Directors did not recommend the payment of a dividend for the year ended 31 December 2023.