By Nse Anthony-Uko
(Sundiata Finance) — More than a year after its shareholders approved that it raise its share capital up to N25 b8llion, AIICO Insurance Plc on Thursday, announced that it has commenced talks with investors willing to invest in the company.
The company secretary and legal adviser, Donald Kanu, in a statement, said AIICO has opened discussions with an investor on a non-binding basis for investment in the company.
Shareholders of AIICO insurance at its annual general meeting held on May 5, 2016 authorised that its share capital is to be increased from N7.5 billion 15 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each to N12.5 billion by the creation of 10 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each ranking pari-passu with existing ordinary shares of the Company.
The shareholders of the insurance and financial services conglomerate also approved an upgrade to a Holding Company as well as raise fresh capital up to N25 billion. They had agreed that the proposed fresh share capital of N25 billion is to be raised either by way of public offering, placing, and rights issue or other methods or combination of methods.
AIICO as a group has subsidiaries in Insurance, Pension, Trustees and Health Management. The insurance company had recorded a decline in its gross premium and profit in the second quarter of 2017. It posted a 46.7 per cent decline in profit before tax which dropped to N1.13 billion from N2.36 billion made in the second quarter of 2016.
Its gross premium had declined by 13.7 per cent from N15.58 billion recorded in the second quarter of 2016 to N14.8 billion in the first half of the 2017 financial year. AIICO’s net assets had however risen by 5.4 per cent from N8.34 billion in Q2 of 2016 to N8.52 billion in Q2 2017.