LOLC General Insurance debuts trading on the CSE

Podium participants (from left): Capital Trust Securities Head of Research Hasitha Leanage, LGIL Head of Corporate Sales Karthigun Silvan, LGIL Deputy General Manager Imraz Iqbal, CSE CEO Rajeeva Bandaranaike, LGIL CEO Kithsiri Gunawardena, CSE CRO Renuke Wijeywardhane, Capital Trust Securities Head of Corporate Finance Divya Casie Cherry Alles, PW Corporate Secretarial Director Lasanthi Abeykoon, and LGIL Head of Corporate Sales Sanjaya Attanayake

CSE Chief Executive Officer Rajeeva Bandaranaike 

LOLC General Insurance CEO Kithsiri Gunawardena

The shares of LOLC General Insurance (CODE: LGIL-N-0000) commenced trading on the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) on 31 December 2021. The shares have been listed on the Diri Savi Board of the CSE under the ‘Property and Casualty Insurance’ sector. The occasion was marked with a special bell ringing ceremony.

LOLC General Insurance saw its share price gain by 159.5% or Rs. 12.60 to close at Rs. 20.50 as opposed to its IPO price of Rs. 7.90. Over 85 million shares of LGIL changed hands via 16.540 trades for Rs. 1.6 billion.

Representing LGIL CEO Kithsiri Gunawardena, Deputy General Manager Imaz Iqbal, Head of Underwriting Karthigun Silva, and Head of Corporate Sales Sanjaya Attanayake attended the event. Financial advisors and joint managers to the issue, PW Corporate Secretarial Ltd. Director Lasanthi Abeykoon, Capital Trust Securities Ltd. Head of Research Hasitha Leanage, and Head of Corporate Finance Divya Casie Chetty Alles represented the event. 

The CSE was represented by CEO Rajeeva Bandaranaike and CRO Renuke Wijayawardhane. Speaking at the ceremony, CSE CEO Bandaranaike congratulated LGIL on its initiative to go public. "2021 is a record year for the CSE’s primary market, and over Rs. 118 billion in terms of capital has been raised from debt equity, rights issues, and private placements. We have had 13 equity issues this year, raising nearly Rs. 12 billion. The CSE is seeing a healthy appetite among local investors for equity IPOs, and the demand for LGIL was no different. LGIF had a very successful IPO and was oversubscribed on the opening day itself. The CSE believes that it is important to have companies in the insurance industry with a strong track record, with a commitment to excellence in our listed portfolios so that they can offer more diversified opportunities for the growing base of investors. 

Commenting on the listing history of 2021, Bandaranaike added: "December has been a record month where we are seeing seven equity IPOs. This not only shows the confidence that investors have in our listed companies, but also, increasingly, we are seeing listed companies coming into and making use of the capital market for their funding requirements. We are happy to welcome LGIF as our 296th listed company."

Speaking at the event, LGIL CEO Gunawardena said: "LGIL, in the recent past, has seen tremendous growth despite the severe challenges faced by the company and the industry at large due to the pandemic. The remarkable results over the past couple of years stand witness to the company’s grit towards challenges faced then, now and in the future. The insurance industry in Sri Lanka in 2020 had a negative growth of 2.24% whereas LGIL witnessed a growth of 13%. This statement says it all in terms of the kind of team that we have, the kind of culture that we have instilled as being part of LOLC Group, and the kind of growth strategy that we are looking at. This is not only in Sri Lanka, but outside as well, as LOLC group already has business presence in 17 countries and plans to expand into three more countries in the near future, including Rwanda. From an insurance perspective, we believe there is great opportunity for global expansion. As a company, we already own 45% of Serendib insurance company in Cambodia and we aspire to expand further. The motto in general insurance has always been ‘It's not the price that we compete with, but it’s the service.’ There is absolutely no compromise when it comes to serving our customers. "

Gunawardena thanked the CSE, PW Corporate Secretarial Ltd., Capital Trust Securities Ltd. and the colleagues at LGIL for the support extended during the IPO. LOLC General Insurance is a subsidiary of one of Sri Lanka’s largest diversified conglomerates, namely LOLC Holdings PLC.