Saudi Reinsurance Company (Saudi Re), listed on the Saudi Exchange (Tadawul), announced on April 6, 2022 that the board of directors recommended increasing the company’s capital by 50% through a rights issue.
The SR 445.5 million rights issue will increase the capital from SR 891 million to SR 1.336 billion. Accordingly, the number of shares will increase from 89.1 million to 133.65 million.
The move aims to strengthen Saudi Re’s capital base and support its future expansion activities.
The capital increase is subject to the approval of the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), the Capital Market Authority (CMA), and other regulatory authorities, in addition to its extraordinary general meeting.
Furthermore, the company will announce the appointment of a financial advisor and submission of the capital increase application file in due course.
In 2021, Saudi Re successfully completed a capital increase to SR 891 million from SR 810 million by capitalizing SR 81 million from retained earnings. The capital increase was done through a 1-for-10 bonus share distribution.
“Saudi Re has attained a annual compound growth rate of 19% over the past three years, as we expand our activities across more than 40 markets in the Middle East, Asia and Lloyd’s Market in the United Kingdom and Africa,” commented Fahad Al-Hesni, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Saudi Re.
“Our Gross Written Premium (GWP) increased scale by 19.3% to SR 1.1 billion in 2021, marking the highest premium level achieved in the history of Saudi Re and reinforcing our status among the top-ranked Middle Eastern reinsurers,” he said.
Saudi Re has developed its strategy towards 2026, which focuses on solidifying its presence in its home market, as well as diversifying in international markets.
“In line with our long-term strategy towards 2026, we have set out with an ambition to evolve and diversify as a company that can reliably serve the risk and growing reinsurance needs of the Kingdom, aiming to become among the top 50 global reinsurers,” stated Al-Hesni.
Despite challenging market conditions, Saudi Re maintained its track record of profitability in 2021 by registering a net profit of SR 38.3 million, resulting in a 4.4% growth in total shareholders’ equity to SR 964 million by the end of 2021.
Saudi Re has maintained its Insurance Financial Strength Rating (IFSR) at “A3” with a stable outlook from Moody’s Investors Service (Moody's), reflecting industry expectations for the company to maintain profitability, capital adequacy, adequate level of reserves and strong asset quality demonstrated by its investment portfolio.