Local financial services group – Botswana Insurance Holdings Limited (BIHL) has told the capital markets that it is expecting to report higher profits for the interim period that ended 30 June 2020.
While other sectors have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, BIHL, says its interim results (profit before tax) for the six-month period ended 30 June 2020 will be higher than those reported for the six-month period ended 30 June 2019 by between 44 to 56 percent. This will translate into a change of between P80 million and P100 million in the Profit After Tax (PAT).
The group’s available figures show that its profit after tax for the six-month period ended 30 June 2019 was P180 million.
The BIHL board says the reasons for the higher earnings during the current period are the higher margins experienced on some business lines and the fact that in the comparative period last year the Group’s investments in associates suffered unrealised losses which did not recur in the current reporting period.
“The Board is pleased to announce this improvement in performance amid the uncertainties and challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic which exacerbated the already difficult trading environment,” reads part of the Trading Statement issued by the company late last week.
BIHL board says it expect to release the group’s results for the period under review during the first week of September 2020.
“The shareholders of BIHL Group and potential investors are advised to exercise caution when trading in the Company’s securities until a detailed announcement is made”.
BIHL’s top shareholders include South Africa’s financial behemoth Sanlam, which owns 41.22 percent of BIHL, while Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF) holds 19.92 percent and African Life Assurance Company has 17.21 percent.
The group’s positive results come at a time when the global equity markets also recorded their best quarterly gains in decades as economies began to reopen and massive fiscal and monetary stimulus boosted sentiment.
