Nigeria Re, NICON in court with NAICOM over recapitalisation process

… as exercise claims first casualties

Nigeria’s oldest reinsurance company, Nigeria Reinsurance Corporation (Nigeria Re), and NICON Insurance Limited, both owned by billionaire politician Jimoh Ibrahim, have dragged the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to court over the industry recapitalisation process.

Both entities were absent from NAICOM’s recently published roster of 43 certified firms that successfully met the new minimum capital benchmarks. They were also excluded from a separate list of eight companies whose capital positions are still undergoing final regulatory verification.

Multiple industry sources told BusinessDay that NAICOM is preparing to appoint liquidators to take over the affairs of both companies, prompting their owner to seek legal injunctions to halt the regulator’s moves. Exactly five years ago, in 2021, Ibrahim faced a similar approach, having to resort to court proceedings after the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) seized the above-listed firms over an alleged N69.4 billion debt.

This legal battle signals what could become the most significant shake-up in Nigeria’s insurance sector in decades, as the enforcement of the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025 officially commences.

Meanwhile, the recapitalisation exercise has already claimed its first official casualty. Goldlink Insurance Plc has confirmed the revocation of its operating license by NAICOM. The company, which had battled prolonged governance and management crises before coming under…