Heirs Insurance: Five Years After

Heirs Insurance Group this year clocked five in its operations in Nigerian insurance market, Ebere Nwoji captures the various transformations the company brought to bear in the sector

Over five years ago, the Chairman of Heirs Insurance Group, Mr Tony Elumelu, promised to replicate the milestones recorded by the United Bank for Africa (UBA) in the banking sector by stimulating and deepening insurance penetration in the country. Many, including insurance operators thought his projections were unattainable, given Nigerians’ lackadaisical attitude to insurance.

But five years down the line, Elumelu through the notable activities of Heirs Insurance Group comprising of Heirs General Insurance, Heirs Life Assurance and Heirs Insurance Brokers, has unequivocally achieved his dream  through  disruption of  the market by launching end-to-end digital channels, allowing customers to purchase e policies under three minutes; thus setting  an ambitious standard, targeting claim pay-outs in as little as 24 hours and testing 5-minute resolutions for fully documented claims.

By making that promise and followed it with the determination to bring a turnaround in the insurance sector, Elumelu was responding to the charge by the then Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Sunday Thomas on Chairmen of newly licensed Insurance companies of which Heirs Insurance Group was among them, to further uphold corporate governance and proper risk management and commit to market development in a positive manner.

The commissioner then warned the newly licensed firms that the license were only held on lease and could be revoked if there were sufficient reasons at any point to do so.

Elumelu’s Assurance

In his response, the visibly excited Elumelu promised not to disappoint the regulator noting that “to whom much is given, much is expected.”

He promised to uphold the tenets of good corporate governance and abide by the industry standards, as well as deepen insurance penetration through innovative product offerings.

He said: “And talking about market development of products, that is one of the things we bring to this sector, we have done it before. In 2005, UBA was the first Nigerian bank to dispense over N1 billion through ATMs and today a lot has happened and we will do no less…we have been in the cutting edge of banking innovation.

“We will do no less in this sector: we understand market research, we understand what consumers want and we know how to reach consumers and we know how to meet and surpass the expectation of consumers and there’s always room for improvement especially with technology.

“So, working with this leadership of NAICOM and other industry leaders in the insurance sector, because we can’t do it alone, we will all work together to bring about the change that would help this industry grow so that it’s contribution to GDP will begin to move to at least between 1 per cent to 3 per cent under your leadership in NAICOM.”

He also promised, “It’s possible. We will also work with you in engaging the National Assembly when necessary legislation has to be put in place to make the sector more successful.”

Undoubtedly, some newly licensed firms made similar promises in the past while receiving their license of authority to operate but today they have either gone under or taken over by another insurance firm under a new name because the Nigerian insurance terrain is a very tough one.

Heirs Group innovation

But for Elumelu’s Heirs Insurance Group, the story is different as after the initial loss recorded by the underwriting firm in its first year of operation, it’s fame spread like a wild fire in new product offering, digitalisation for faster distribution of insurance products, innovation to ensure faster claims settlement and huge premium generation.

It was to the extent that today the group is adjudged the fastest growing insurance company by Financial Times.

Its journey from a disruptive start-up to an industry leader focused on democratising insurance and restoring public trust across the country. 

With a vision to democratise access to insurance, making it a fundamental necessity for all Nigerians and transforming Africa through financial inclusion and economic empowerment the group is heading towards fulfilling one of the promises by its chairman of ensuring that insurance sector in Nigeria grows from its current status of less than one percent contribution to the GDP to 3 percent contribution.

Of course, this was one of its founder’s driving force, way back in 2013, when Heirs Holdings identified that Nigeria’s insurance penetration rate was under one percent. The primary drivers were a lack of trust in claim pay-outs and products that failed to meet every day needs. 

Birth, Expansion, Profitability

So, after a seven-year licensing process, the company secured its operational licenses from NAICOM in November 2020.  Its business operations officially commenced in December 2020, followed by a grand public launch in Lagos on June 1, 2021. 

Moving beyond a loss position in its first year, the group broke even rapidly, recording historic jumps in Gross Written Premium. Operating under Heirs Life Assurance (life) and Heirs General Insurance (general), led by MD/CEO Niyi Onifade as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.

Gross Written Premium surged by 70 to N61 billion. PBT more than doubled to N11.2 billion, with total assets reaching N92.9 billion.

After the initial year’s loss in the 2021, the group achieved an impressive gross written premium, showing a 226 percent increase from N6.1 billion in 2021. The group successfully processed and paid N2.6 billion claims to customers.

Heirs Insurance Group comprises two main subsidiaries who’s specific 2022 financial highlights include Heirs Life Assurance (HLA) with gross written premium of N11.5billion profit before tax (PBT)N401.5million recovering from a loss of N277.7million in 2021.

Heirs General Insurance (HGI): recorded gross written premium of N8.5billion.

Profit before tax stood at N499.4 million recovering from a loss of N862.1million in 2021.

Underwriting Profit rose to 1.3 billion while paid claims stood at N1.1 billion.

In the 2023 financial year, Heirs Insurance Group (HIG) reported a combined gross written premium of N31.7 billion, representing a 59.30 increase from N19.9 billion in 2022. The group’s audited financial statements, approved by NAICOM, showed earned insurance revenue reaching N20.5 billion. Profit before tax surged to N4.2 billion.

The group during the year under review disbursed over N4.1 billion in claims settlements.

Heirs General Insurance (HGI)recorded a 77 percent increase in premium to N12 billion (from ₦8.5 billion in 2022), with a PBT of N2.4 billion and total assets of N18.1 billion.

Heirs Insurance Brokers (HIB) revenue rose by 68 percent to N1.275 billion, while PBT jumped by 128 percent to N529 million. In its audited 2024 financial results, Heirs group achieved a combined gross written premium of N61 billion a 70 percent increase from N35.8 billion in 2023. Profit before tax stood at N11.2 billion showing 133 percent increase YoY. Claims payment stood at N10.4 billion showing 149 percent increase YoY. Total Assets stood at N92.9 billion showing 66 increase YoY. Both Heirs Life Assurance (HLA) and Heirs General Insurance (HGI) recorded significant growth in premium and profit.

In terms of product performance in the market, Heirs Life Assurance, received approval from the Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC) as one of the official pension providers for the state.

In 2022 Heirs insurance launched a product tagged Her Motor Plan, a motor insurance product for women by Heirs General Insurance.

The product won the Most Female-Centric Insurance Product of the Year at the 2022 Women in Marketing & Communications Awards (WIMCA) ceremony. Heirs Insurance Group launched the Heirs Insurance Essay Championship, a programme that targets students and their families, promoting financial literacy. Heirs Insurance Group rolled out a bancassurance partnership with UBA, offering insurance through 250 UBA branch offices nationwide. Heirs Insurance Group introduced seamless digital channels (Website, USSD, Mobile App & Chatbot), making it faster and easier for customers to on-board policies and verify claims.

Innovations AND Awards

Within these five years operational period, Heirs Insurance Group has won series of local and international awards. The group has also brought series of digital innovations into Nigeria insurance space. It won the Best MSME Insurance Company of the Year Award at the 2024 Naira Metrics MSME Awards​. Heirs Insurance Group won “Best in Technology for Development” Award at the 2024 SERAS Africa Sustainability/CSR Awards​.

Heirs Insurance Group received the ISO 27001 certification from the Management System Certification body (MSECB), demonstrating unmatched commitment to global security standards. Heirs Insurance Group launched Africa’s first web series on insurance, the Underwriters. The group further launched the Good Project, a sustainability initiative empowering community by transforming plastic waste into reusable items. The group launched Heirs Insurance Football Club. In 2025, Heirs Insurance Group won “Insurance Company of the Year” in recognition of its innovative approach and dedication to excellence in the Nigerian insurance industry. The group also won the College of Insurance & Financial Management Award as “Insurance Agency Company of the Year. Heirs Insurance Group received Naira Metrics ratings as one of the top three digital innovators in the Nigerian insurance industry.

In 2026, Heirs Insurance Group launched the Heirs Insurance Hackathon Competition, a programme that targets students in tertiary institutions to develop AI solutions for insurance. Heirs Insurance Group also launched Nigeria’s first multi-lingual Gen-AI Assistant, Prince AI. Heirs Insurance Group was also named among Africa’s Fastest-Growing companies in the Financial Times ranking.

Heirs Insurance Group has in these five years stood as a game changer in insurance sector. It is hoped that this advantage will be sustained to position the underwriting firm as pace setter in Nigerian insurance sector.