Ominvest 2024 profits hit by insurance subsidiary losses

• Payouts increased after floods
• Ominvest profit down 7%
• Losses at Liva Group insurers

Losses at an insurance subsidiary caused by the deadly floods that struck Oman and the UAE last year hit profits at Oman International Development and Investment Company (Ominvest), a large listed holding company.

Ominvest reported net profit of $96 million in 2024, down 7 percent year on year from $104 million in 2023. The company’s share price closed at OMR0.330 on Thursday, down from a peak of OMR0.3785 in October.

“The Group performance was impacted by losses incurred by Liva Group, our insurance subsidiary, following the unprecedented rainfall in the UAE in April 2024,” Ominvest said in a statement.

Floods caused by severe rains hit the UAE and Oman on April 16 last year, killing at least 19 people in the sultanate, knocking out power supplies and closing Dubai’s international airport.

UAE insurance companies have lost about $3 billion in payouts to settle claims in that period, according to Gallagher Re, a reinsurance broker. 

• Almost one year after floods, UAE insurance costs keep surging
• Lessons for the Gulf’s insurance industry from April’s extreme weather
• Catastrophic floods are a wake-up call for insurers

Ominvest is a major shareholder in Liva Group, the largest insurance company in Oman, with a 49 percent stake. Liva also has branches in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. 

Ominvest is an investment company listed in the Muscat Security Market (MSX) with total assets of $3.5 billion. Earlier this year it secured a $500 million loan for expansion in the sultanate and the wider region.

About 49 percent of its shares are traded in the MSM while the Omani government owns 12 percent and the rest is held privately.