Insurers seek NAICOM’s swift action on capital verification as deadline nears

With just 81 days to the recapitalisation deadline, insurance companies have urged the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to fast-track the ongoing capital verification exercise, as several operators are yet to be visited by the audit firms appointed to conduct the process.

The development has heightened anxiety across the industry, particularly among companies racing to meet the new capital requirements, amid concerns that delays in the verification exercise, scheduled to end on May 30, could affect compliance timelines and the final determination of firms that would successfully scale through the recapitalisation programme.

The concerns were raised at the Insurance Industry Committee Meeting held in Lagos on Thursday and chaired by the Commissioner for Insurance/CEO of NAICOM, Olusegun Omosehin.

NAICOM had appointed the “Big Four” global audit firms – PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), KPMG, Deloitte, and Ernst & Young (EY), to independently verify the capital positions of insurance and reinsurance companies participating in the ongoing recapitalisation exercise.

As of the latest count, the capital positions of about 25 insurance companies, out of more than 50 operators, were already undergoing verification, while firms yet to be visited by the auditors are becoming increasingly apprehensive over the feasibility of meeting the May 30 deadline.

Addressing journalists after the meeting, Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, chairperson of the Communication and Stakeholders Engagement Sub-Committee of the Insurers’ Committee, said the Commissioner for Insurance stressed that only a few weeks remained before the recapitalisation deadline and urged operators to treat the exercise with utmost seriousness.

According to her, the commissioner expressed satisfaction with the level of compliance recorded so far and reminded operators that May 31 remains the deadline for companies to invite NAICOM for capital verification.

Nwachukwu also disclosed that the commissioner highlighted NAICOM’s ongoing collaboration with the Nigerian Police in combating fake insurance operators, particularly in the area of third-party motor insurance and related products. She urged industry players to intensify efforts to eradicate fake insurance policies across the country.

“On third-party insurance, the commissioner spoke about guidelines recently released by NAICOM, including those relating to marine cargo insurance. She explained that the objective of the guidelines is to ensure adequate disclosure and proper regulation of policies issued within the industry, while also guaranteeing that Nigerians derive full value from insurance products,” she said.

She further revealed that the commissioner addressed the enforcement of the National Identification Number (NIN) requirement within the industry.

“He noted that operators had provided feedback on compliance and reaffirmed the commitment that no claims would be paid to any individual or organisation whose NIN had not been updated. He added that the industry would await further directives from the regulator regarding the implementation deadline,” Nwachukwu stated.

According to her, another major outcome of the meeting was the renewed call for stronger collaboration between the insurance industry and other financial institutions to deepen credit access and strengthen Nigeria’s financial ecosystem.

Bonaventure Okhaimo, managing director of National Credit Guarantee Company Limited (NCGC), presented the company’s activities and advocated the establishment of a working group to define the role insurance would play in promoting a stronger credit culture in Nigeria. Participants at the meeting also proposed areas of collaboration between the insurance industry and the NCGC to support credit access for MSMEs, individuals, and organisations.

Similarly, Tunde Popoola, managing director of Credit Bureau Limited, highlighted the benefits of engaging with the credit bureau system. He explained that insurers could leverage data on customers’ credit behaviour, including bounced cheques and failure to meet financial obligations, to improve character evaluation and risk assessment.

Popoola disclosed that only 12 insurance companies had registered with the bureau, while just five were currently active. He urged more insurers to join the platform and contribute data on premium defaulters and fraudulent claims to strengthen the nation’s financial information system.

The meeting also received an update on the development of a Nigerian mortality table aimed at creating a local actuarial experience table for the industry. Stakeholders expressed optimism that the project would be completed once all required industry data had been submitted.

In addition, the Nigerian Insurance Industry Committee on AfCFTA and Trade Agreements presented its activities and unveiled a new logo. The committee continues to monitor bilateral trade agreements involving Nigeria, including those with the UAE, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and China, while positioning the insurance industry strategically under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The committee also conducts enlightenment campaigns across the industry to demystify AfCFTA and prepare operators for the implications of emerging trade agreements.

Further discussions at the meeting highlighted NAICOM’s recent improvement in the Federal Government’s Business Enabling Environment rankings. The commission ranked 9th among government agencies in Nigeria and emerged first in the Business and Risk Optimisation Cluster among financial regulators. Stakeholders described the achievement as evidence of the ongoing reforms and transformation within the insurance industry.

With the signing of NIIRA 2025 by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on August 5, 2025, insurance and reinsurance companies in Nigeria were given new minimum capital requirements, with July 31, 2026, set as the deadline for compliance.

Under the new requirements, life insurance companies are required to raise their minimum capital requirement (MCR) to N10 billion, general insurance companies to N15 billion, composite insurance companies to N25 billion, and reinsurance companies to N35 billion, alongside a transition to a Risk-Based Capital (RBC) framework.

Modestus Anaesoronye

Modestus Anaesoronye is a leading Nigerian financial journalist with over two decades of experience reporting on the insurance and pension sectors across Nigeria and West Africa. He has held key editorial positions at major national media outlets, including The Comet, The Nation, and Financial Standard, and currently serves as a Senior Financial Analyst at BusinessDay Media Ltd. A widely travelled reporter, he has covered industry developments in more than 14 countries across Africa and Asia. Anaesoronye is a multiple award-winning journalist, honoured several times as Insurance Journalist of the Year and Pension Journalist of the Year by recognised industry bodies, including PensionScope and the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp), among others.