The Saudi insurance sector grew 2.3 percent in 2020, with total written premiums reaching SR38.78 billion, according to the 14th annual report published by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA). Despite facing the difficulties of the pandemic, the insurance sector continued to perform positively while maintaining the safety of its clients.
The report also mentioned that the energy and accident, and liability insurance classes showed a notable increase in written premiums, where their penetration ratio in the sector increased from 1.3 percent in 2019 to 1.5 percent in 2020.
While talking about underwriting performance, the overall loss ratio positively improved, reaching 77.5 percent and the net profit of the sector increased by 61.1 percent compared to the previous year’s figure, thereby improving the return-on-assets and return-on-equity ratios. Additionally, the report also mentioned that the overall Saudization ratio increased from 74 percent in 2019 to 75 percent in 2020.
The SAMA report noted that even though the sector faced a challenging situation during the Covid-19 pandemic, their insurance sector continued to perform positively while maintaining the safety of their clients and facilitating their insurance trading.
Additionally, the report also noted the constant progress in the IFRS17 implementation journey and the ongoing merger and acquisition in the sector.
After going through the report, we can say that the above-stated developments are positive signs that the insurance sector is consistent with SAMA’s effort to make its presence larger and come out as a major contributor to the economy.