The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has declared that Nigeria’s ongoing insurance recapitalization exercise is pivotal to positioning local operators for stronger competitiveness under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), warning that only only well-capitalised firms will withstand the demands of cross-border underwriting and emerging risks across the continent.
Speaking at the Continental Reinsurance Industry CEOs Roundtable in Lagos, the Commission said the capital raise currently driving renewed activity across the market is not a routine regulatory directive but a strategic intervention to rebuild industry capacity, enhance solvency, and prepare Nigerian insurers for wider African expansion.
Delivering a goodwill message on behalf of the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr. Olusegun Ayo Omosehin, the Deputy Commissioner (Technical), Dr. Usman Jankara, said the new capital thresholds would enable operators to underwrite bigger and more complex risks, retain premium that currently leaks offshore, and attract long-term investment needed to deepen market stability.
According to him, stronger capital buffers would fuel a new wave of mergers and acquisitions, sharpen operational efficiency, and elevate Nigeria’s competitiveness as AfCFTA opens wider opportunities for cross-border insurance and reinsurance services.
“Recapitalisation is the foundation for growth, not the finish line,” Jankara said, noting that the minimum capital requirements of ₦10 billion for life companies, ₦15 billion for non-life firms, and ₦35 billion for reinsurers remain critical for building firms capable of scaling sustainably across African markets.
He commended Continental Reinsurance for convening industry leaders to interrogate the future of capacity, risk, and collaboration under the theme, “Recapitalisation and Beyond: Rethinking Risk, Capacity and Collaboration for a Resilient Insurance Sector.” He said the dialogue complements NAICOM’s broader reforms aimed at strengthening solvency, fostering innovation, and steering the market toward long-term resilience.
In a lead presentation, Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Bismarck Rewane, described recapitalisation as a transformative lever for strengthening economic growth, improving climate-risk absorption, and deepening the capital market.
He argued that a well-capitalised insurance sector would accelerate claim settlement, boost investor confidence, stimulate product innovation, and drive faster technology adoption.
The Managing Director of Continental Reinsurance Plc, Dr. Fatai Lawal, said the roundtable was convened to help operators assess progress, share perspectives, and chart a unified pathway toward a stronger and future-ready industry. He noted that the theme captures both the urgency and opportunity confronting the sector at this critical inflection point.
