GCC Insurance Daily
The day's insurance news across the GCC — regulation, governance, AI in insurance, and people moves. Curated, attributed, and linked to the source.
The Saudi Insurance Authority will replace its current solvency regime with a risk-based capital framework from 1 January 2027, running a parallel-testing phase through 2026. It is a Solvency II-style move that ties capital to underwriting and investment risk — and should, over time, reward the better-run insurers.
With the Central Bank of the UAE now the single regulator for insurance under Federal Decree-Law No. 6 of 2025, the one-year transition window runs to 16 September 2026 — after which legacy Insurance Authority rules give way to the CBUAE's own framework. Operations and compliance teams should be closing the gaps now, not in September.
New market research sizes the GCC's AI-powered insurtech segment in the billions and flags 2026 as the year AI shifts from proofs-of-concept into live underwriting and claims systems. For regional insurers the question is no longer whether to deploy, but how to govern it.
Saudi Arabia has appointed Abdulaziz Al Boug — GOSI governor and a former chief executive of Tawuniya — as chairman of the Insurance Authority by royal order, putting an experienced insurance hand at the top of the Kingdom's fast-reforming market.
Saudi market leader Tawuniya reported Q1 2026 gross written premiums up 14.9% to SAR 7.5bn and net profit up 10.1% to SAR 288m — a strong start that underlines the Kingdom's continued insurance expansion.
Qatar Insurance Company posted a 6% rise in Q1 2026 net profit to QAR 217m on premiums of QAR 3.2bn (up 13%), with its insurance service result up around 70% year on year — evidence that the group's underwriting discipline is feeding through to the bottom line.
Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company reported Q1 2026 pre-tax profit of AED 99.5m, down 25.3% year on year, citing prudent provisions tied to regional geopolitical developments and investment-market volatility. Gross written premiums held broadly steady at about AED 3.8bn.
The Insurance Authority's National Insurance Strategy aims to make Saudi Arabia one of the world's fastest-growing insurance markets, with the regulator pointing publicly to a near-doubling of sector size over five years. Ambitious — and a clear signal of where regional growth capital will look first.
Each item is a short editorial summary with a link to the original source. Items marked Rumour · unverified are unconfirmed and should be treated with caution. Compiled automatically; corrections welcome.