Letter from the Chairman
Years go by, events take place, challenges increase, and still, Arab Reinsurance Company (Arab Re) heads confidently towards continuous achievements and profitable results; thus, strengthening its agents’ trust in the Company and its leading role in the region.
Arab Re has always been loyal to its partners, and credible in its dealings. This was gained throughout years of commitment towards fulfilling its dues and contracts, while providing the technical assistance needed. Its commitment today extends to the transfer of its know-how and expertise by organizing specialized workshops on various subjects, offering training opportunities to its clients as well as its staff, and promoting new innovative products in its markets. In addition, the Company was keen in building solid direct business relationships with its clients, on the basis of trust, transparency and protection of common interests, regardless of circumstances.
In line with its new strategy, Arab Re increased its capital from £2 million in year 1972 to US$75 million in year 2011, with a total equity equal to US$ 100 million, while continuing to pay dividends on a yearly basis.
The Company has also upgraded its organizational structure to match its vision and requirements. New departments and sections were added such as the Risk Management Department, the R&D and Actuarial Department, Life and Health Underwriting, and a Takaful compliance reinsurance window; thus reflecting business growth, maturity and diversification. These departments were enriched with qualified human resources, some experts in their fields, and with solid academic backgrounds.
The management maintained the development of the financial reports and statements, following the international accounting standards, whereby it underwent a drastic re-structuring of the Company’s software in order to upkeep the preparation of advanced financial reports in proper and timely fashion.
It is imperative to mention the political events that took place in some Arab countries and their adverse repercussions on these countries’ own economies, as well as the regional ones; which were also further affected by the ongoing global economical and financial crisis. Thanks to its executive management’s strategy, following the guidelines of the Board of Directors, we are proud to say that our Company managed to reduce the direct negative impact of these circumstances to a great extent. In fact, Arab Re continued to realize sound financial results; driven by its consistent policy of retaining proper technical, financial and contingency reserves and its sound selection of secure and profitable investment channels. It is worth mentioning that the reserves are allocated periodically with high professionalism and accuracy, based on historic statistics and advanced actuarial studies. The Company’s portfolio attained a 7% growth despite the economic slow-down mentioned above. This success is attributed to the Company's management and its adoption of a sound underwriting policy.
Finally, amid the support of our Shareholders and under the guidance of our Board of Directors; we look forward to realizing our strategy and goals by having a pro-active role in our industry. This can only be attained with the faith and loyalty of our clients, the active efforts of the executive management, and the performance and dedication of our staff.
Khaldoun Bakri Barakat
Chairman