NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 10 – The Mauritian insurance company has completed the acquisition of Saham Assurance Company Kenya Limited, through its subsidiary MUA Insurance Limited Kenya.
In a statement, the company says the transaction follows regulatory approval by the Insurance Regulatory Authority of Kenya, the COMESA Competition Commission and the South African Reserve Bank.
The Kenya Competition Authority was also duly notified of the acquisition.
The consolidated business will operate under the MUA brand and will have the full support of its parent company in Mauritius.
To lead the merged entity, MUA Insurance has appointed Lydia Kibaara as CEO, to take over from Ashraf Musbally who retains oversight of the East African subsidiaries and remains on the Board of the holding company.
Bertrand Casteres, Group CEO of MUA, said: “With this acquisition, we confirm our growth path and long-term ambitions in Kenya. It is also a validation of our three-year strategy “Ambition 2020″ which plans substantial investments to finance our growth in Kenya and more broadly in East Africa.”
“Today, the East Africa operations account for about a quarter of our revenue. We are striving to significantly increase this contribution over the next three years and join the top 10 insurance companies in Kenya. Saham Kenya’s team will be integrated in accordance with the group’s values and will find their place within the MUA family.”
Present in the region since 2014, following the acquisition of Phoenix Transafrica Holdings (with a presence in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda), the CEO says the firm is significantly strengthening its local presence through this acquisition, sending out a strong signal about the group’s confidence in the Kenyan insurance sector.
Before the takeover, Saham Kenya was previously owned by the pan-African insurance group Sanlam Pan Africa.
