Africa Specialty Risks (ASR), an African and Middle Eastern re/insurance group, has confirmed that ASR Middle East has commenced operating as a Lloyd’s service company, which allows it to underwrite in Dubai on behalf of ASR Syndicate 2454, the first African focused syndicate at Lloyd’s.
ASR Middle East particularly focuses on MEA business produced in the region, however the company will also service Middle Eastern interests in Africa too.
“Utilising ASR Syndicate 2454’s capacity from Dubai is a significant step for ASR to service the insurance industry in both the Middle East and Africa from the DIFC,” commented Zouheb Azam, Senior Executive Officer of ASR in Dubai.
Readers will recall that Syndicate 2454 began writing business at Lloyd’s in April 2024, with plans to write circa £70 million of gross premium in 2024, initially focusing on underwriting ASR’s existing lines of business.
In fact, it is the first Lloyd’s syndicate to be focused on writing African business, which currently only represents 2% of all Lloyd’s business.
Earlier this year, ASR opened an office within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the global financial hub in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia (MEASA) region. The launch of the office clearly solidified ASR’s ties within the Emirate and the wider region, where the Group has been writing business since February 2022.
The Dubai office also adds to ASR’s established presence in London, Mauritius, Bermuda and Morocco.
“This announcement represents yet another incredibly important milestone for us. It enhances our distribution bandwidth and with a local approach to underwriting in Dubai it will significantly broaden our reach by providing direct, efficient access to our products and blended capacities to clients,” said Amit Khilosia, Chief Distribution Officer of ASR.
“It is incredibly exciting for us that ASR Syndicate 2454 is now able to offer Lloyd’s solutions and robust security through our Lloyd’s service company in Dubai. We have built up an exceptionally strong team of underwriters in London and Dubai, and this milestone enables us to better serve all of our clients, increasing the amount of specialist capacity that is available in the region,” added Mikir Shah, CEO of ASR.
“Lloyd’s Dubai is delighted to welcome Africa Specialty Risks to the DIFC. Their expertise and unique access to the African market will add strength to our regional offering by enhancing risk mitigation solutions available for local and global businesses,” said Andrew Woodward, Lloyd’s Regional Head for Middle East and Turkey.
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