Overview:

Equity Bank Uganda more than doubled its life assurance premiums to Shs11.72bn in Q2 2026, even as the number of life policies fell from 75,000 to 65,000

Equity Bank Uganda more than doubled its life assurance premiums in the second quarter of 2026, even as the number of customers holding life policies fell.

Premiums rose from Shs5.73bn in the second quarter of 2025 to Shs11.72bn, an increase of about 105%. Over the same period, the number of life policies dropped from 75,000 to 65,000.

The figures show the bank earning significantly more from a smaller pool of policyholders, as customers took up higher-value cover.

James Sserumaga, the bank’s head of bancassurance, said the growth was due to staff training, improved productivity and wider access to insurance through its branches, merchant agents and digital platforms.

He said the bank had deliberately focused on increasing the value of existing policies, rather than relying only on signing up new customers.

The bank has also set up customer engagement teams to follow up with policyholders and encourage them to keep paying premiums and renew their cover, Sserumaga said.

The strong life performance lifted Equity Bank’s total bancassurance premiums to Shs16.13bn, giving it an 8.77% share of the market and ranking it fourth among Ugandan banks that sell insurance on behalf of insurers.

Non-life insurance, by contrast, dipped slightly, with premiums falling from Shs4.45bn to Shs4.41bn.

The bank attributed this partly to a change in its lending. Non-life products such as cover for property used as loan collateral have traditionally been a key source of income, but demand has fallen as more of the bank’s lending has shifted to unsecured loans.

Unlike life assurance, the number of non-life policies rose, from 659 to 839, though at lower average values.

The bank says it plans to grow this segment through better renewal rates, more corporate clients and the sale of higher-value policies.

Sserumaga said future growth was expected to come from digital channels and microinsurance products aimed at lower-income customers, including micro-medical cover.

Insurance uptake in Uganda remains low, and providers are under pressure to make their products both affordable and profitable.