Moroccan tycoon Mohamed Bensalah acquires Kenyan insurance firm

Mohamed Hassan Bensalah’s Holmarcom Group has purchased a 51-percent stake in Kenya’s Monarch Insurance Company for an undisclosed sum.

The deal makes Holmarcom the majority shareholder alongside Kamu Group and Maisha Bank, North Africa Post reported.

Nevertheless, the Moroccan company’s business with the Kenyan company is still subject to the approval of Kenya’s competition authorities.

Holmarcom Group is a family-run business established about 50 years ago by the late Abdelkader Bensalah, the father of Mohamed Hassan, who is the current chairman and CEO. The group operates in finance, insurance, agribusiness, distribution, logistics and real estate.

In addition to its primary market (Morocco), the company has a footprint in three other African countries, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire and Benin. Two of its companies are listed on the Casablanca Stock Exchange: Les Eaux Minérales d’Oulmès and AtlantaSanad Assurance.

Commenting, Bensalah said: “With an expertise in insurance of more than 40 years, solid fundamentals and a market with strong potential, we are convinced that the Monarch Insurance Company has real growth prospects and we are delighted to be able to be part of its evolution.”

On the other hand, Monarch Insurance is a Kenya-based insurer that provides life insurance and non-life insurance, including car, property and travel insurance. It has been operating in Kenya for more than 40 years.

While Monarch Insurance employs 130 people with 12 branches across Kenya, Holmarcom Group employs over 3,500 people. The partnership will help both companies leverage each other’s market with their unique offerings.

Commenting on the deal was Kamu Group CEO Jared Kangwana, a key stakeholder in Monarch Insurance. “The Holmarcom Group has an unmatched depth and breadth of experience in the Moroccan insurance market, which is the second-largest in Africa and its capital injection into Monarch Insurance will bolster our growth and ambition to become a reference player in Kenya’s insurance industry,” Kangana said.