OLD Mutual Africa has spread its wings to four other countries namely Ghana, Nigeria, Swaziland and Botswana, managing director of Old Mutual African Operations, Johannes Gawaxab has said.
In an interview at his Windhoek home last week, Gawaxab, who retired as Old Mutual Namibia chief executive officer, also said new markets have already been opened up in South Sudan, Rwanda, Uganda, the DRC, Tanzania and Burundi through acquiring shares in Union des Assurance De Paris (UAP) in January this year.
"We are the majority shareholders in the UAP Holdings in South Sudan, Rwanda, Uganda and other countries," he said.
UAP Insurance Company of Kenya was the result of a merger between Provincial Insurance Company and the Union des Assurance De Paris in 1994.
Two years later, another French company, AXA, acquired UAP, but divested in 2000 leading to UAP becoming a wholly Kenyan-owned company.
In 2005, operating as Greenfield Investment, UAP Holdings spread into Uganda and a year later entered the South Sudan market. In 2011, it started in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo before Tanzania in 2013 where it entered as Century Insurance Company.
The agreement with Old Mutual on 8 January 2015 was announced by Centum Investment Company, an affiliate of the Kenyan government-owned Industrial and Commercial Development Corporation and its chairperson, businessman Chris Kirubi.
According to the deal, Old Mutual acquired a combined 23,33% stake valued at US$77,8 million.
Old Mutual's stake went up on 27 January 2015, when the company acquired a further 37,33% from the Abraaj Group, Africinvest and Swedfund for US$155,5 million. This brings Old Mutual's total stake to 60,66%.
Abraaj is a private equity firm with interests in more than 20 countries where it holds assets valued at US$7,5 billion, while Africinvest, a part of Integra Group of Tunisia, manages more that 14 funds worth US$1 billion on the continent where it has six offices.
Swedfund International AB is a limited liability company owned by the government of Sweden and offers risk capital for investments in Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe. It has invested in more than 220 companies and has its regional office in Nairobi, Kenya.
Calling himself a fixer, Gawaxab was headhunted to start Old Mutual Asset Management in 1998. At the time, he said, there was no staff and he had to start from ground zero.
"I am in the business of fixing, acquiring, starting up and expanding into new markets," he said, adding that when he took over as Old Mutual Africa boss in 2006, there were only four countries in the portfolio.
The countries were Zimbabwe, Kenya, Malawi and Namibia, while the value of the assets under management was below US$2 billion (N$25 billion) with about 1 500 workers.
By the end of last year, the assets were worth US$6 billion (N$75 billion) with 4 000 workers. He also said the company posted a profit of US$96 million (N$1,2 billion) up from US$10 million (N$128 million) in 2006.
Gawaxab says one of the biggest challenges in his career was handling the Zimbabwean hyperinflation situation between 2007 and 2009.
In Zimbabwe, Old Mutual runs the Central Africa Building Society (CABS) and five lines of insurances which are life insurance, general insurance, banking, asset management and property management.
He said when Old Mutual Africa was faced with hyperinflation in Zimbabwe, they had to come up with measures such as cutting costs to the bone by reducing the staff from 3 000 to about 700.
Gawaxab also said the company had to close several lines of business and retained what was core to the business.
Currently, he said, CABS is providing housing through a project in Budiriro, one of Harare's suburbs, where about 15 000 units are being built.
"We managed the Zimbabwean situation by taking risk management and flight to safety. We have given our workers in Zimbabwe 25% shares as part of the country's indigenisation policy," he said.
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