Business
Lasaco Assurance turns tide on half-year loss, helped by cost efficiency
Composite insurance underwriter Lasaco Assurance has turned the corner on the N731.5 million half-year loss it logged in the first six months of last year, which heralded its first annual loss in thirteen years during the financial year 2025.
The insurer, in the last mile of a recapitalisation deadline in the Nigerian insurance industry that expires this month, recorded N384.9 million in the year to June, compared with a year ago, according to its latest corporate report published Friday.
Its return to profitability owed less to revenue growth than to cost-cutting. Insurance revenue, its core income source, retreated by 3.2 per cent from the half-year 2025 level to N16.3 billion.
That happened following a slide in the cash its general business insurance contract brings to the pool.
Lasaco Insurance cut back insurance service expenses by 17 per cent, and it also reduced net expenses from reinsurance contracts by 11.4 per cent; both were key factors that drove insurance service results to N3.1 billion from N1.1 billion a year ago.
Investment result was less impressive, dropping 13.4 per cent to N1.6 billion, owing to a decline in interest revenue calculated using the effective interest method.
The financial services company earned less in interest terms from fixed deposits and much less from bonds during the period.
It incurred a net foreign exchange loss of N67.9 million, compared with the N58.1 million gain recorded in the same period last year, hurting net investment results.
One other dark spot in the broadly strong result was a plunge in other operating income to N33.3 million from N246.1 million. Operating expenses, up by 9.2 per cent, rose to N4.2 billion from N3.8 billion.
Profit before tax stood at N436.2 million, compared to a pre-tax profit of N518.1 million one year prior, while post-tax profit came to N384.9 million, relative to a net loss of N731.5 million in the corresponding period of last year.
ALSO READ: Lasaco Assurance Plc appoints new managing director
Nigeria’s latest round of insurance industry recapitalisation, which concludes this month, requires life insurance businesses to scale up their minimum paid-up capital from N2 billion to N10 billion and non-life insurers from N3 billion to N15 billion.
Composite insurance firms have also been set a minimum threshold of N25 billion, up from N5 billion.
From its recently concluded rights issue, the underwriter raised N19.3 billion, which it said has passed capital verification with the National Insurance Commission and has received confirmation of admissibility from the market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission.
NGX Insurance Index, the equity index that tracks the performance of Nigeria’s most capitalised and liquid insurance stocks, has been up by 23.8 per cent since President Bola Tinubu signed the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act on 4th August 2025.
The Federal Government has welcomed GIG Mobility Group’s (GIGM) expansion into digital mobility services, urging the company to prioritise reliable service delivery as it moves beyond interstate transportation into travel booking and premium vehicle hire.
The government said digital mobility solutions must not only simplify travel arrangements but also guarantee dependable services and protect customers who rely on technology to organise their journeys.
The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Transportation, Olufunso Adebiyi, represented by Usman Abubakar, Deputy Director, Road and Mass Transit, gave the admonition on Wednesday in Abuja at the unveiling of PASS by GIGM and hireX by GIGM.
Mr Adebiyi said the ministry remained open to partnerships with the company, describing the platforms as an innovation that could improve transportation and travel services.
He also stressed that the ministry hoped the company’s new services would benefit Nigerians and wished it success in its expansion.
According to the Director-General of the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Joseph Osanipin, the launch marked the beginning of the work required to sustain the services, warning that the company would need to meet customers’ expectations as demand grew.
“After we have launched today, the real work is going to start. Many customers will come in and demand this service. We have to be up to it,” he said.
Mr Osanipin said trust, reliability and responsive customer service were essential to the success of digital mobility platforms, particularly where customers were required to provide personal information and make payments before travelling.
He added that innovation must address practical problems and deliver solutions through technology in seamless, efficient ways.
GIGM’s background and expansion
GIG Mobility Group is a Nigerian transportation and technology company that began operations in 1998 as God Is Good Motors, providing interstate passenger transportation.
Founded by Edwin and Stella Ajaere in Benin City, the company initially operated between Benin City and Lagos before expanding its bus services to other Nigerian cities.
After Edwin Ajaere’s death, his son, Chidi Ajaere, took over management and led the company’s expansion and adoption of technology-driven transportation services.
The company rebranded from God Is Good Motors to GIG Mobility in 2019, reflecting its expansion beyond conventional passenger transportation.
It also expanded into Ghana, where it operates transportation services, including routes connecting Accra and Kumasi.
GIGM has introduced digital booking and transport management systems into its operations, allowing customers to book interstate journeys online rather than relying solely on physical terminals.
The company says it operates more than 40 terminals across Nigeria and Ghana. Its Chief Executive Officer, Enahoro Okhae, said the Gwagwalada terminal, opened on Tuesday, was its 40th terminal across West Africa.
What the new platforms offer
The two platforms are designed to extend GIGM’s services beyond its traditional interstate bus transportation business into other aspects of mobility and travel.
PASS by GIGM is a travel and tours platform that brings together flight bookings, hotel reservations, airport pickups, curated tours and interstate bus ticketing. It is intended to allow customers to organise different parts of a journey through one digital channel rather than booking each service separately.
hireX by GIGM, on the other hand, is a vehicle-hire marketplace offering chauffeur-driven vehicles for hourly, daily and one-way bookings. The service is designed for airport transfers, business trips, events and other journeys requiring hired vehicles.
According to the company, its Abuja fleet will comprise vehicles owned by GIGM and those operated by partner providers.
The platforms form part of the company’s broader plan to develop a mobility ecosystem that connects transportation with travel and related services.
GIGM says customer expectations are changing
Mr Okhae explained that the expansion was informed by changing customer expectations, particularly demands for convenience, speed, digital access and simpler travel arrangements.
He said the company had traditionally been known for moving passengers between states but was now seeking to provide services covering other parts of their journeys.
“Strong companies evolve. Strong companies listen. Strong companies learn. They adapt. They invest,” he said.
Mr Okhae added that the company was seeking to respond to the movement of people across Africa for business, education, family engagements, tourism and other opportunities.
He noted that GIGM’s expansion was based on the belief that customers increasingly needed connected services rather than separate transportation arrangements.
“The future belongs to connected solutions, not isolated services,” he said.
He said the company was building an ecosystem that would let customers access different services and organise their journeys.
Mr Okhae added that Abuja was strategic to the company’s expansion, explaining that the launch was intended to extend services already introduced in Lagos to customers in the capital.
Technology and operational capacity
Charles Oloyede, GIGM’s Head of Product, said technology had enabled the company to expand into other segments of the mobility business.
ALSO READ: CREDICORP rolls out first CNG mobility activation in Adamawa, advancing its 10,000 mobility rollout
He explained that the company’s existing technological infrastructure supported road and air travel services, helping it manage operations and provide customers with different travel options.
Mr Oloyede said the company relied on technology to manage operational complexities that would be difficult to handle manually.
He added that GIGM had about 150 daily touchpoints, although he did not clarify whether the figure referred to transactions, operational contacts or customer interactions.
He also noted that the company’s technology had been developed to support its operations and provide customers with a more coordinated travel experience.
According to Mr Oloyede, Abuja was an important market for the company, and the launch was intended to extend services already available in Lagos to customers in the capital.
NADDC highlights reliability and customer trust
Mr Osanipin said customers would need confidence in the platforms before entrusting them with personal information, payments and travel arrangements.
He noted that reliability and responsive customer service were equally important, particularly when customers encountered difficulties or needed urgent assistance.
The NADDC director-general said the company’s experience in transportation could help it respond to customers’ needs but cautioned against assuming that the launch alone would guarantee success.
He urged the management to continue improving its services and avoid complacency.
“When you are number one, think as number two,” he said.
The platforms come at a time when customers increasingly use digital channels to arrange transportation and other services.
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