International General Insurance Holdings Ltd (IGI) has reported third-quarter net profit of $16.1 million, up from $5.1 million for the same period to September 30 last year.

For the first nine months of the year, net profit rose to $34.5 million from the $19.6 million declared in the comparative period.

The net underwriting results improved to $26.7 million for the quarter, up from the same three months last year, largely driven by a growth in premiums.

Gross written premiums for the quarter were up 13.9 per cent to $115.3 million.

The company drove the combined ratio down from 93.7 per cent in the 2020 third quarter to 85 per cent for the same period this year, benefiting from an increase in net premiums earned and favourable development of net loss reserves from prior accident years during the quarter.

For the first nine months of 2021, gross written premiums were $382.1 million, an increase of 13.1 per cent, compared with $337.7 million for the comparable period in 2020.

The combined ratio for the nine months was 87.3 per cent, compared with 86.5 per cent for the same period in 2020.

IGI chairman and CEO Wasef Jabsheh said: “This was another strong quarter for IGI and our results for the year to date reflect the robust underlying fundamentals of IGI’s business.

“Through the first nine months of 2021, we have performed well on all key measures, most notably growing our book value per share by 3.6 per cent.”

“Attractive market conditions are holding up with further rate increases across our portfolio in excess of 13 per cent, though I would note that we are now seeing some easing in upwards rate momentum, and we expect this to continue as we approach the January 2022 renewal period.

“Having said that, we are seeing attractive opportunities across our markets, particularly in Europe following the launch of our European subsidiary in Malta in July.”

“We look forward to continuing the significant progress we have made since becoming a public company in March 2020, and maintaining our track record of generating long-term value for our shareholders.”