The German Investment and Development Corporation has bought an additional Ksh 1.5 Billion stake into pan-African reinsurer, ZEP-RE, increasing its stake in the company to 14.93%.
The additional investment signals DEG’s confidence in ZEP-RE’s future prospects and comes at atime when there’s has been massive interest in the company by local and other global institutional investors. Just last week, Kenya Re also acquired an additional 4.4% stake in the company for Ksh 1.3 Billion.
Read; Kenya Re acquires additional 4.4% stake in Zep-Re For Ksh 1.3 …
“This capital will assist the Company to build on its operational results realized in 2015 which saw a 10.6% growth in our business underwritten from USD125 million in 2014 to USD138.8 million in 2015, 18% growth in shareholders’ funds, 21% increase in total assets and a net realized profit of USD 19.96 million,” said ZEP-RE Managing Director Mr. Rajni Varia.
DEG first joined ZEP-RE in 2014 as a shareholder after investing USD15 million into the Company. DEG is A+ rated, is one of Europe’s largest development finance institutions and finances investments into private companies in the developing and emerging economies as a means of supporting frameworks that contribute to sustainable economic growth.
This additional investment by DEG comes at a key and opportune moment for ZEP-RE as it embarks on expanding its business reach and strives to broaden its developmental agenda in line with the mandate vested upon it by countries of the COMESA region.
ZEP-RE currently writes over 4000 treaties from 500 companies in 50 countries drawn from Africa, Middle East, and the Indian Sub-continent. In Eastern and Southern Africa, the company enjoys a greater goodwill as demonstrated by the 10% mandatory cessions being offered by governments of Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Uganda.
“But our business in the region is not limited to the 10% mandatory cessions as shown by increased additional gross premium we underwrote in Uganda and other markets in 2015,” said Mr. Varia.
