GENERAL Accident Insurance Company Jamaica Limited (GENAC) is setting its sights on growing its regional footprint across the English-speaking Caribbean so as to deepen its capacity and book of business.

GENAC is one of the dominant general insurers in Jamaica by insurance revenue, with regional operations in Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago. The company has made strategic moves over the last five years to support this regional expansion push.

One of these moves saw Gregory St Hugh Foster become the chief executive officer (CEO) and country manager for the Jamaican business in May while Sharon Donaldson-Levine assumed the role of group CEO for GENAC. Donaldson-Levine’s scope is centred around the strategic direction of the company’s operation in its existing markets.

“Our ambition and aspiration is for General Accident to be the premier insurance platform in the Caribbean. You can’t be that by just servicing three markets so we will be in other markets across the Caribbean,” said Chairman Paul B Scott at the company’s annual general meeting (AGM) on September 12.

GENAC made its first regional move in September 2019 when it acquired a 55 per cent stake in Motor One Insurance Company Limited (now rebranded General Accident Insurance Company (Trinidad) Limited). GENAC now owns 75 per cent of its Trinidadian subsidiary and 80 per cent of General Accident Insurance Company (Barbados) Limited, which began operations in April 2020.

The Trinidadian business improved its revenue by 51 per cent to $1.98 billion during 2024 but saw a 36 per cent cut in net profit from $42.10 million to $27.67 million. The subsidiary had $2.65 billion in total assets, $985.21 million in net assets, and 69 employees.

The Barbadian business grew its revenue by 34 per cent to $755.50 million during 2024 and generated a net profit of $361,000 compared to a net loss of $12.17 million. The subsidiary had $638.04 million of assets, $82.17 million in net assets, and 10 employees. “We had made some significant expansion plans that were to be implemented in the first quarter of this year that had to be delayed for regulatory reasons in various jurisdictions. I’m hoping that those plans will be improved, certainly by the end of the year, and that would dramatically change the trajectory of what we can do,” Scott added. GENAC shareholders approved three special resolutions at the company’s 2024 AGM. Those approvals resulted in the board size being expanded to 15 directors — an increase in the authorised share capital to 1.4 billion ordinary shares and an increase in the authorised share capital through the creation of 10 million new redeemable preference shares.

Although the GENAC chairman didn’t rule out the possibility of entering Spanish-speaking markets in the future, he explained that the company’s current focus would be on the English-speaking Caribbean. This is due to the fact that insurance contracts are supported by each market’s governing law, with the English-speaking Caribbean’s legal framework derived from the British.

“We’re an underwriter in the English-speaking Caribbean. We have an application in Guyana; we hope to be able to write business in Guyana sometime in the future. We see Guyana as an expanding market. We hope to be able to be in the rest of the Caribbean at some point in the future,” Scott explained regarding the Guyana prospects.

GENAC’s core Jamaican business continues to grow premiums and its overall market share in the property and motor segments. GENAC’s 2023 annual report revealed that 57 per cent of the consolidated portfolio was related to the motor segment, followed by the fire segment at 29 per cent. Foster also noted that GENAC had a 23 per cent market share in the property insurance segment with motor currently at 14 per cent. The motor segment is currently represented under the sub-brand AutoSmart which was launched in 2016.

For the 2024 financial year, GENAC’s core Jamaican business grew insurance revenue by 29 per cent to $8.69 billion but saw a 71 per cent cut in the insurance service result from $585.58 million to $167.87 million. That cut was due to the 105 per cent increase in the net expenses from the reinsurance contracts held which was also a function of a growing insurance book. Due to the higher reinsurance costs, the profit before tax decreased 59 per cent to $292.53 million, with net profit at $221.30 million. “The reality is [that] insurance requires scale. I think being a single-market insurer is going to become harder and harder as the years go on. I think the reason is that reinsurance is a technical business and the Caribbean is lumped as one risk. It doesn’t matter if a hurricane hits St Lucia or Cayman and misses Jamaica — it’s still Caribbean hurricane risk,” Scott explained regarding queries on weather risk.

Reinsurance is a risk mitigation tool for insurance companies which allows them to cede a portion of their risk to a reinsurer. The insurance company provides a portion of the premium collected from its client to the reinsurer which then assumes a portion of risk from the insurance policy. This means that a general insurance company can contain the financial risk it is exposed to from its underwriting business.

According to GENAC’s 2024 annual report, the group’s consolidated gross written premiums, as measured by IFRS 4, has grown 87 per cent from $12.04 billion in 2020 to $22.58 billion in 2024. Under the current IFRS 17 accounting standard used for insurance companies, GENAC’s consolidated insurance revenue has increased 71 per cent from $6.67 billion in 2022 to $11.43 billion in 2024.

GENAC’s move to expand comes at a time when other Jamaican general insurers continue to expand by acquisition and entering new markets. British Caribbean Insurance Company Limited (BCIC) and ICD Group Holdings Limited acquired JN General Insurance Company Limited (JNGI) in June. BCIC acquired 37 per cent of JNGI while ICD acquired the remaining balance. BCIC is a subsidiary of ICD Group.

Even Insurance Company of The West Indies Limited (ICWI) offers its services in nine Caribbean markets, with Jamaica making up half of its book of business. GENAC’s consolidated insurance revenue for the second quarter (April to June) grew 16 per cent to $3.25 billion but its insurance service result dipped 78 per cent from $79.71 million to $17.46 million. That was due to a 19 per cent increase in insurance service expenses to $2.49 billion.

Despite a cut in other operating expenses, profit before taxation (PBT) decreased 37 per cent from $137.01 million to $86.73 million. Consolidated net profit declined 77 per cent from $103.58 million to $24.08 million, with net profit attributable to shareholders at $36.47 million.

For the overall six months insurance revenue grew 17 per cent to $6.28 billion, with the insurance service result decreasing 36 per cent from $174.65 million to $111.90 million. However, increased net investment income and other operating income pushed consolidated net profit up nine per cent to $174.26 million, with net profit attributable to shareholders at $180.38 million. The trailing 12 months earnings per share (EPS) is $0.54. GENAC’s asset base stood at $12.35 billion, with cash at $2.41 billion and investments securities at $3.88 billion. Total liabilities and equity attributable to shareholders stood at $7.97 billion and $4 billion, respectively. GENAC’s stock price closed at $6.15 on Tuesday which leaves it down 0.50 per cent in 2025 with a market capitalisation of $6.34 billion.

GENAC also changed its external auditors from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to Ernst & Young (EY). Shareholders approved this appointment at the company’s AGM on Friday.