The growth of insurance companies may seem clear at first glance: more premiums, more policies, and higher revenues. But first-half 2026 results show that an increase in business volume does not necessarily mean an increase in the value the company generates.

Of the 25 listed insurance and reinsurance companies, 16 reported profits, while 9 recorded losses. Combined net results totaled approximately SAR 1.69 billion. However, the bulk of the profits was concentrated at Bupa Arabia and Tawuniya, which together generated approximately SAR 1.30 billion, or nearly two-thirds of the profitable companies’ earnings.

This picture raises a broader question: When is an insurance company’s growth truly healthy?

Premiums Are Not Profit

An increase in premiums means that the company has sold more insurance coverage, but on its own it does not tell us what remains after claims, reinsurance costs, and business-related expenses have been paid.

Tawuniya’s results illustrate this clearly. Insurance revenue rose by approximately 15.9% to nearly SAR 12 billion, while written premiums increased by 21.5% to SAR 14.53 billion. However, net profit declined by approximately 16% to SAR 609.8 million.

In other words, the company grew in terms of business volume, but that growth was not fully converted into profit.

This makes the more important question not: How much did the company sell? but rather: How much did it cost to generate those sales?

When Growth Turns Into Profit

By contrast, MedGulf’s results present a different model. Insurance revenue rose to SAR 2.57 billion, an increase of 26.6%, while written premiums grew by approximately 41% to nearly SAR 3.91 billion. Net profit, meanwhile, rose to SAR 80.4 million, an increase of 343%.

In this case, growth was not merely an expansion in portfolio size; it was accompanied by an improvement in insurance operations, in addition to the contribution from investment results.

This is the most important type of growth: the company grows while simultaneously improving its ability to convert that scale into a financial result.

Sometimes Remediation Matters More Than Growth

But growth is not the only way to improve results.

At Walaa, insurance revenue declined by approximately 11.3% to nearly SAR 1.31 billion. Nevertheless, the company moved from a loss of SAR 117.3 million in the first half of the previous year to a profit of SAR 43.2 million.

What changed was not the volume of activity, but the quality of the result it generated. Insurance service results turned into a profit of SAR 14.4 million, while investment income of SAR 63 million supported the final result.

The same pattern, to varying degrees, can be seen at companies such as Al Khaleejia General and Etihad Gulf Ahlia, where results improved without relying on significant revenue growth.

This shows that improving pricing, claims management, expenses, and portfolio management can sometimes be more valuable than simply selling additional policies.

Why Don’t Premiums Equal Revenue?

One of the points that can most complicate the reading of insurance company results is the difference between written premiums and insurance revenue.

Written premiums reflect the volume of business underwritten, while insurance revenue relates to the period during which the company actually provided insurance coverage. Therefore, the full value of a contract may not appear in revenue during the same period.

Arabian Shield’s results illustrate this point: written premiums rose by approximately 114%, while insurance revenue moved in a different direction.

Therefore, looking at premiums alone may create an exaggerated impression of growth. What matters more is tracking what happens to those premiums after they are recognized as revenue, and then what remains after business costs.

Investment Helps—but It Does Not Fix Everything

Investments also form part of the profitability equation, and their contribution may be evident in the results of several companies.

However, reliance on them does not necessarily compensate for weakness in core insurance operations. At its essence, an insurance company sells protection against risk. Accordingly, its ability to price those risks, manage claims, and handle reinsurance determines the quality of its business over the long term.

That is why examining the insurance service result alongside the investment result provides a clearer picture: Did the profit come from the company’s core business, or did investments carry a significant portion of the result?

Insurance Is Not Simply a Market for Selling Policies

The significance of these results extends beyond the companies themselves. Insurance is part of the economy’s financial infrastructure: it enables companies and individuals to bear risks that might otherwise prevent them from expanding, investing, or operating in the first place.

But for insurance to fulfill this role efficiently, the price of risk must be close to its true cost.

If premiums grow because prices are too low, the market may appear to be expanding while claims accumulate and later put pressure on profits. But when growth is accompanied by appropriate pricing and sound risk management, it becomes more sustainable.

Who Is Growing in Size—and Who Is Growing in Value?

First-half results show that insurance companies are not all moving in the same direction.

Some companies combined revenue growth with improved profitability, such as MedGulf, Liva, and GIG. Others increased their revenues, but rising claims pressured their results, such as Tawuniya. Meanwhile, some companies improved their results by addressing operational issues and managing their portfolios, even as revenues declined, such as Walaa.

Therefore, it is not enough to ask about an insurance company’s growth rate. The more important question is: Does every additional riyal in premiums add value, or does it also bring greater costs and risks?

The difference between a company that grows in sales and one that grows in value lies in its ability to know the price that the risk it has accepted is worth.

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