South Africa’s insurances N°1 Sanlam announced in a release published November 24, it was going to acquire a 30% stake in Moroccan firm Saham Finances for US$ 375 million, in the framework of its expansion plan in the Northern and Western parts of Africa.

Saham will acquire these shares from World Bank’s subsidiary International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Abraaj group, the same release revealed.  

“For Sanlam, this transaction is an opportunity to enter both the West and North African markets,” the South African Company said in its release.

To preserve a high growth level, South African insurers have over the past years, accelerated their expansion strategy in Africa ; this as a result of the decrease in their margins on the local market due to job losses in the mining, and the manufacturing sector.

Founded in 1995 by Moulay Hafid Elalamy, Morocco’s actual minister of Industry, trade, investment and digital economy, Saham is present in 26 African countries.

As for Sanlam, it operates in 12 African countries namely Botswana, Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Swaziland, Rwanda, and Mozambique. The firm which also has assets in India, Malaysia and UK, announced last September its goal was to generate more than 20% of its annual net return outside of its local market over the next five years.