• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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NAICOM’s Thomas giving insurance regulation a human face

Bancassurance gets a boost as NAICOM approves 18 licences

The coming on board of Sunday Thomas as acting commissioner for Insurance in the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) a few months ago has brought an unprecedented peace and cooperation among the different stakeholders in the industry.

 Consultation and engagement with the stakeholders including operators, consumers and even investors have increased with a lot of progress on policy development, focused on market expansion and growth.

 It is now predictable and no longer difficult to get approvals on appointments and new products within stipulated time, as long as necessary criteria have been met, underscoring a better understanding between the industry players and the regulator.

 This cooperation was demonstrated at its peak on December 30, 2019, when NAICOM announced the extenuation of the recapitalization deadline from 30th July 2020 to 31st December 2020.

“The Commission has reviewed the recapitalisation plans submitted by operators and various levels of compliance. Similarly, it has noted the inputs from the various engagements with relevant stakeholders, the Commission therefore hereby extends the recapitalisation deadline to December 31, 2020, according to the NAICOM circular.

Read also: NAICOM looks to annuity for next growth of insurance business

 The implications of these are that we may no longer see the kind of litigations that had characterized the industry in the past, which were a result of nonagreements between the operators and the regulator, which did not only affect the growth of the industry, it presented the sector negatively in the eyes of the public.

 If the current trend under Thomas is sustained, we may begin to see NAICOM that mirrors the Central Bank of Nigeria, where policies are agreed with the banks before it is released to the public. In this case, it does not come as a surprise to the banks, and implementations are not contested but supported.

 The Federal Government on August 9, 2019 appointed Sunday Thomas, the acting commissioner for Insurance/CEO of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), pending the appointment of a substantive Commissioner.

The appointment was announced in a letter entitled: Re: Handing Over Note: Appointment of Acting Commissioner for Insurance, referenced, F.1948/BFPIAC/S,2/24, dated August 9, 2019 and signed for Permanent Secretary, Finance by the deputy director, Home Finance, A.O. Bello.

According to him, the appointment was to ensure the effective administration of the commission in line with the provisions of the National Insurance Commission Act 1997.

Thomas was appointed Deputy Commissioner for Insurance, Technical by President Muhammadu Buhari On April 15, 2017, having had over three decades of experience in the industry, both as a regulator and operator. Prior to  his appointment in April 2017 as Deputy Commissioner in charge of technical matters at the Commission, Thomas held the position of Director –General at the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) for seven years from May 2010.

He is a vastly experienced and knowledgeable Insurance Professional with over 35 years of uninterrupted service to the Nigerian insurance industry.

During these years, Thomas worked as a Director for seventeen (17) years at the National Insurance Commission from 1992 to December 2009, where at different times he superintended over different departments in the technical division. He had also worked as an insurance operator for over 10 years and rose to the position of Assistant-General Manager at AIICO Insurance Plc until he left in 1992 to join NAICOM.

Thomas is an active participant in the insurance industry activities and had served as a member of several Committees not only within the insurance industry but the entire Financial Services Sector. He holds a BSc (Hons) in Actuarial Science and an MBA Finance, both from the University of Lagos.