Backed by Santam, Centriq Insurance specialises in risk finance, cell captives, underwriting and affinity business. South Africa Magazine learns more.

By Ian Armitage

Centriq Insurance, through its short-term and life insurance subsidiaries, has been providing clients with risk finance, cell captives, underwriting management and affinity insurance solutions, amongst others, for over a decade now.

“Established in 1998, we serve JSE-listed companies, multinationals, state organisations, large affinity groups and specialist underwriters, as well as trade unions, retailers, associations and employee groups, to mention but a few,” says CEO Michael Blain, a Chartered Accountant who also holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Accounting degree from the University of the Witwatersrand and an MBA from Wits Business School.

Having held various managerial positions in the finance and insurance sector, including that of Assistant General Manager of Finance and Special Projects at Commercial Union, Finance Director at PSG Anchor Life, and General Manager: Business Development at the Nova Group, before being appointed at Centriq Insurance as CEO in 2005, Blain finds the South African insurance sector both gratifying, exciting and challenging. “The fact that the insurance industry is constantly evolving makes it an interesting field to work in, leaving one with a sense of excitement as you continuously need to adapt,” he says.

It therefore comes as no surprise that Blain’s primary goal is to ensure that Centriq remains relevant and successful. “We are still a young but established organisation, continuously trying to carve out a niche for ourselves. Therefore, we’re constantly working on taking our business model to the next level,” he says.

This is evident in the ambitious growth targets Centriq has set for itself. With a current annual revenue of in the early billions, Blain says the next step for the company is to double the figure by 2015. “It is ambitious, but achievable with the right focus and commitment. The main challenge, however, being what the global economy will do. Other than that, I believe there is a need in the local market for fresh ideas and innovation, and ethical, reliable partners – a gap we aim to fill,” he says.

Overall, Centriq is performing well. “Our fundamentals are good and our business partners are all holding their own in terms of their growth,” says Blain.

He adds that to remain competitive in the insurance sector, Centriq Insurance strives to be the best in what they do.

As opposed to traditional underwriting models, Centriq also believes in offering clients and business partners’ sustainable, competitive and tailor-made solutions. “We do not try to do everything ourselves. Centriq chooses to partner with skilled and experienced partners who possess particular capabilities and business acumen in their selected target niches. Our portfolio features a uniform profile in which partners embrace a risk-sharing philosophy and understand and practice sophisticated risk management principles. This is achieved via a consultative, problem-solving approach while direct dialogue with clients enables us to customise insurance programmes in response to our clients' unique concerns and objectives,” says Blain.

This outlook saw Centriq being assigned an A+ grading by the Global Credit Rating Company (GCR) for the third consecutive year recently, based on its ability to pay claims; its specialised product offering as key differentiating factor; its net profit; its conservative investment approach; its ability to maintain a comfortable solvency margin at promoter level; and its ability to manage credit risk relating to third party sponsored cells. Centriq’s innovative approach is bearing fruit. The company’s fresh approach to business, profit-sharing and the formation of strong partnerships has made it a popular choice across the niche sectors it operates in, while differentiating them from the product and service offerings of Santam – which has 100 percent shares in Centriq.

Going forward, Blain says that Centriq will continue to strengthen its position in the market place through the provision of high-level underwriting facilities by means of its underwriting management agency (UMA) partnership model; contingency policy offerings and cell captive facilities, amongst others.

“We will also continue to invest in staff with multi-functional expertise while maintaining our focus on systems infrastructure to further improve efficiency and enhance risk management.”

Given the above, Centriq’s success lies in their excellence, creativity, innovation, and strong, transparent partnerships.

“Traditional insurance companies have not really ventured into this space and traditional insurance firms have not been able to offer tailor-made solutions to customers, especially as far as companies are concerned. And this is where Centriq’s business model will continue to play an integral role as it enables us to meet our clients’ exact needs through the design of suitable products, which allows them to on-sell it,” concludes Blain.