Africa Specialty Risks Group (ASR) celebrated the second anniversary of its operations in Mauritius on 27 April with an event at the Mont Choisy Heritage Zone. The team has grown to 24 employees, prompting a move to a new office to accommodate the expansion.
Since its launch in 2021, ASR Group has helped to de-risk approximately US$11.4 billion of investments into Africa and has written business into 47 countries, proving the strong potential for Mauritius as a reinsurance hub for the continent
Speaking at the second anniversary event, the Hon. Mahen Kumar Seeruttun, Minister of Financial Services and Good Governance said: “As we continue to develop our insurance ecosystem, it is our wish and aspiration that Mauritius continues to be the launchpad for businesses such as Africa Specialty Risks to create meaningful solutions for the region.”
Africa Specialty Risks Group (“ASR”), a reinsurance business focused on providing risk mitigating insurance solutions to the African Corporate and Specialty market, has celebrated the second anniversary of its operations in Mauritius with an event at the Mont Choisy Heritage Zone. The event was graced by the Hon. Mahen Kumar Seeruttun, Minister of Financial Services and Good Governance, and H.E. Charlotte Pierre, British High Commissioner to Mauritius, who delivered the keynote speeches at the event.
ASR is backed by Helios Investment Partners, the largest Africa-focused private investment firm, through its latest fund, Helios Investors IV, L.P., whose investors include British International Investment plc (the UK’s development finance institution), and the International Finance Corporation (a member of the World Bank Group).
The Group began its operations in Mauritius in 2021, when it launched a fully capitalised and licenced Reinsurer on the island, and when it was also granted an Insurance Manager licence from the Financial Services Commission in Mauritius which allows the Group to act as a Managing General Agent (MGA).
Since its launch, ASR has participated in the de-risking of $847 million of businesses and investments in Mauritius across the Liability, Construction, Political Violence & Terrorism, Energy, Property, Political Risk Insurance & Trade Credit lines. At pan-African level, the Group has participated in risk mitigation of approximately $11.4 billion of investments into 47 African countries across its nine lines of business. ASR was awarded a Silver Sustainability Rating this year by EcoVadis, following its bronze award last year. ESG is at the heart of ASR’s business.
Mikir Shah, CEO of Africa Specialty Risks, commented:
“We set out to create a scalable African reinsurer which will be of real benefit to the African continent, and within just two years I am proud to say that we have already achieved this from Mauritius, which we see as a key financial hub for Africa.”
“As a key player in the Mauritius reinsurance sector and ecosystem, we strongly support the Government’s aim to become the preferred route for investment into Africa. By strengthening the position of the island as a reinsurance hub, we will benefit Mauritius and the insurers in the country on the one hand, and will protect the African continent on the other.”
“One of the main attributes of Mauritius is the availability of a skilled and bilingual workforce, which helps us to meet the needs of our clients. We are committed to enhancing the capabilities of the local industry by offering training in specialty insurance lines and providing aspirational career paths to our dedicated staff.”
Krishna Bheenick, Managing Director Mauritius, said:
“Since our launch we have already hired 24 local staff in Mauritius, across underwriting, finance, actuarial, risk and compliance functions, strategy and business administration, with over 60% being women, and we plan to further expand our team by the end of the year. We have a strong focus on ensuring continuous training and knowledge transfer for the Mauritius team across all corporate specialty lines of business.”
The Minister of Financial Services and Good Governance, the Hon. Mahen Kumar Seeruttun, said:
“As we continue to develop our insurance ecosystem, it is our wish and aspiration that Mauritius continues to be the launchpad for businesses such as Africa Specialty Risks to create meaningful solutions for the region. I am confident that ASR in Mauritius can significantly contribute to our endeavours in making our IFC take on a bigger role as a reinsurance hub.”
“Let us all look forward to shaping the future and making the vibrant African region more securely positioned for growth. Our Government looks forward to even stronger collaboration with ASR as partners in shaping a better African Region.”
The British High Commissioner, H.E. Charlotte Pierre, said:
“I was delighted to join the Hon. Minister Seeruttun, Mr Mikir Shah, CEO of the UK-based Africa Specialty Risks Group, and colleagues from the financial services sector in Mauritius to mark the second anniversary of ASR’s presence in Mauritius – an excellent opportunity to reiterate our collective commitment to take this critical sector to new heights. The global reinsurance market is worth over half a trillion pounds and grew over 10% between 2022 and 2023. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has caused considerable disruption globally, on the back of post-pandemic recovery. The reinsurance industry has remained a steadfast contributor to our economies in dire times. ASR is headquartered in London and a great example of the contribution UK based firms make to Mauritius’ financial services sector. By working together across the sector, we can advance the business landscape, create job opportunities and help our economies grow bigger, better, greener and stronger.
