Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Insurance sector revenue surges 16.3% in Jan-Mar

Insurance sector revenue surges 16.3% in Jan-Mar

Content image - Phnom Penh Post
Traffic accidents along Street 60m in Phnom Penh's Meanchey district. The insurance sector paid out around $11.3 million in claims over January-March, with general, life and micro-insurance accounting for $9.1, $2.1 and $0.2 million. Heng Chivoan

Insurance sector revenue surges 16.3% in Jan-Mar

The insurance sector in Cambodia earned about $85 million in gross written premiums in the first quarter of this year, increasing by 16.3 per cent year-on-year, according to the Insurance Association of Cambodia (IAC).

Of that, general and life insurance premiums came to $39.1 and $44.6 million, respectively, surging by 19.5 and 15.5 per cent year-on-year, and accounting for 46 per cent and nearly 53 per cent of the total.

Micro-insurance premiums were to the tune of $1.2 million, down by 26.7 per cent year-on-year, and accounted for just 1.4 per cent of the total, the IAC said.

The insurance sector paid out around $11.3 million in claims over January-March, with general, life and micro-insurance accounting for $9.1, $2.1 and $0.2 million.

As of March 31, there were nearly 1.2 million active policies, categorised as “general” (510,000), “life” (380,000) and “micro-insurance” (280,000).

IAC chairman Huy Vatharo told The Post on June 28 that the insurance sector in Cambodia remained in positive territory despite Covid-19’s sweeping devastation across various economic sectors.

“Positive growth in the market reflects the need for insurance services, which people and businesses institutions use as a means of hedging against various risks that lead to financial hardship. In other words, they do not risk taking risks that could lead to property damage, accidents or other losses that could lead to financial loss,” he said.

Forte Insurance Group CEO Youk Chamroeunrith said his firm did not face any significant challenges in the first quarter, even as the Kingdom grappled with the February 20 community transmission of the novel coronavirus.

In fact, he said, premiums grew by 10 per cent year-on-year during the quarter, “largely due to health and motor insurance”.

He attributed the continued growth in the Kingdom’s insurance sector to Cambodians’ increased “understanding of the benefits and necessity” of policies, higher incomes and a large number of unserved and underserved customers.

In developed countries, total premiums account for about seven per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), while that figure is just 0.6 per cent in the Kingdom, he said.

Chamroeunrith had previously noted that the rate is between six and seven per cent in neighbouring countries.

IAC said it currently comprises 33 insurance companies – 16 general insurers, 11 life insurers, five micro-insurers and one reinsurer.

MOST VIEWED

  • Wing Bank opens new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004

    Wing Bank celebrates first anniversary as commercial bank with launch of brand-new branch. One year since officially launching with a commercial banking licence, Wing Bank on March 14 launched a new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004. The launch was presided over by

  • Siem Reap airport to close after new one opens

    After the new Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport (SAI) opens in October, the existing complex serving the northwestern province will be “completely closed”, according to State Secretariat of Civil Aviation (SSCA) spokesman Sin Chansereyvutha. SAI developer Angkor International Airport Investment (Cambodia) Co Ltd (AIAI) last month

  • Girl from Stung Meanchey dump now college grad living in Australia

    After finishing her foundational studies at Trinity College and earning a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Melbourne in 2022, Ron Sophy, a girl who once lived at the Stung Meanchey garbage dump and scavenged for things to sell, is now working at a private

  • Rare plant fetches high prices from Thai, Chinese

    Many types of plants found in Cambodia are used as traditional herbs to treat various diseases, such as giloy or guduchi (Tinospora cordifolia) or aromatic/sand ginger (Kaempferia galangal) or rough cocklebur (Xanthium Strumartium). There is also a plant called coral, which is rarely grown

  • Ministry using ChatGPT AI to ‘ease workload’; Khmer version planned

    The Digital Government Committee is planning to make a Khmer language version of popular artificial intelligence (AI) technology ChatGPT available to the public in the near future, following extensive testing. On March 9, the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications revealed that it has been using the

  • Cambodia returns 15M Covid jabs to China

    Prime Minister Hun Sen said Cambodia will return 15 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to China for donation to other countries. The vaccines in question were ordered but had not yet arrived in Cambodia. While presiding over the Ministry of Health’s annual meeting held on