HNBA News

HNB Assurance PLC (HNBA) and its fully owned subsidiary HNB General Insurance Limited (HNBGI) recently concluded its Chairman’s and Long Service Awards Ceremony 2020 at the Taj Samudra, Colombo. Held in celebration of staff excellence, the event was attended by a limited number of guests as set out by the Company in adherence to all health and safety guidelines. This special occasion was joined by the members of the Senior Management of HNBA and HNBGI and other distinguished guests, to present and witness the crowning of 12 Chairman’s Award Winners and 08 Long Service Award Winners. Expressing views on the event, Chief Executive Officer of HNBA and HNBGI Mr. Prasantha Fernando stated, “Operating amidst concerning times in terms of both, health and the economy, the Group has chartered its way through to confidently address many of its business pillars including stakeholder value creation and employee wellbeing as part of the Company’s drive towards industry excellence. Celebrating achievements, winning spirit and talents in this setting is a challenge, and yet we have come together to admire and reward the laudable efforts of our very fellow staff members as their immense dedication is core to the Group’s success. This is also evident by the Group’s recent Great Place to Work® certification. Furthermore, we firmly believe that tapping the capacity and contribution of our professional staff members to guide and equip them with skills and knowledge for their individual career development is primary in our advancement, and would also assist our market stand remain deep-rooted. I extend my heartiest wishes to the Winners and wish them all the very best in their future endeavors”. Sharing his thoughts, Chief Human Resource Officer of HNBA and HNBGI Mr. Dinuka Pattikiriarachchi stated, “Recognizing and appreciating the value of an exceptional employee should not be determined upon the overall performance standards of a company, nor the favorability of the economic outlook posed by a particular year. It is a blunt fact that the COVID-19 Pandemic had brought about a challenging state over business, staging an inflexible uphill battle to reach pre-pandemic growth rates. Nevertheless, we as an organization stand firm in our commitment to nurture a great place to work in which employee recognition is an essential part in our way of life”. Speaking further, Mr. Pattikiriarachchi stated, “This occasion is one such event in our employee calendar in which we stood not to divest from the said grounds. It is indeed in times such as this, that employers are required to ‘walk the talk’ for their most important asset, the inner public, the go-getters.  I am gladdened, and am sure that this ceremony was a reward for the past, and an investment for the future.” HNB Assurance PLC (HNBA) is one of the fastest growing Insurance Companies in Sri Lanka with a network of 63 branches. HNBA is a Life Insurance company with a rating of A (lka) by Fitch Ratings Lanka for “National Insurer Financial Strength Rating”. Following the introduction of the segregation rules by the Insurer Regulator, HNB General Insurance Limited (HNBGI) was created and commenced its operations in January 2015; HNBGI continues to specialize in motor, non-motor and Takaful insurance solutions and is a fully owned subsidiary of HNB Assurance PLC. HNBA is rated within the Top 100 Brands and Top 100 companies in Sri Lanka by LMD and HNB Assurance has won international awards for Brand Excellence, Digital Marketing and HR Excellence and also won many awards for its Annual Reports at the Award ceremonies organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka and SAFA (South Asian Federation Accountants).

HNB Assurance PLC (HNBA) announced the promotion of Lasitha Wimalaratne as its Chief Operating Officer and Principal Officer with effect from 21st July, 2020. Lasitha who joined HNB Assurance as Deputy Chief Operating Officer on 4th March, 2019 was instrumental in developing revolutionary products such as PrivilegedLife and SupremeHealth Benefit which took the industry by storm. His strategic direction has contributed to the growth of the Company in several ways. Under his guidance HNBA recorded a New Business Premium growth of 27% in 2019 and produced 75 Million Dollar Round Table Qualifiers. With professional experience of over 22 years, of which over 19 years in Life Insurance Operations, Lasitha has held many key positions in both local and international entities including 07 years at AIA Insurance Sri Lanka and 03 years in Sales & Marketing exposure in London. Prior to his appointment at HNBA, Lasitha served Softlogic Life Insurance PLC in the capacity of General Manager and Specified Officer overseeing Life Operations. Having graduated from the University of Sunderland, UK with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Studies, Lasitha obtained his Master of Business Administration Degree from the University of Wales, UK. A Chartered Insurer and a Fellow Member of the Charter Insurance Institute, UK (FCII), Lasitha is also a Fellow Member of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (AZIIF-Fellow) and an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, UK (ACIM). Lasitha is the current Honorary President of the Sri Lanka Insurance Institute (SLII) and has been serving SLII as a Council Member since 2011. He was also the Founder Secretary General of the Association of Chartered Insurance Professionals (ACIP) and is a current Council Member of ACIP. Lasitha has been a part of several local and international Insurance Seminars and has been a Guest Speaker and a Panelist at several Conferences including the Insurance Claims & Underwriting Management Asia Summit 2017 which was held in Singapore and he was the first to publish a book on insurance in a local context, titled “Jeewitha Rakshanaye Asisriya” which highlights the importance and benefits of Life Insurance. HNB Assurance PLC (HNBA) is one of the fastest growing Insurance Companies in Sri Lanka with a network of 63 branches. HNBA is a Life Insurance company with a rating of A (lka) by Fitch Ratings Lanka for ‘National Insurer Financial Strength Rating’. Following the introduction of the segregation rules by the Insurance Regulator, HNB General Insurance Limited (HNBGI) was created and commenced its operations in January 2015; HNBGI continues to specialize in motor, non-motor and Takaful insurance solutions and is a fully owned subsidiary of HNB Assurance PLC. HNBA is rated within the Top 100 brands and Top 100 companies in Sri Lanka by LMD and HNB Assurance has won international awards for Brand Excellence, Digital Marketing and HR Excellence and won many awards for its Annual Reports at award ceremonies organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka and SAFA (South Asian Federation Accountants).

As Sri Lanka gradually steps out of lockdown measures, markets are rolling out carefully devised plans like never before, with cuts and chops to cater the all new ‘normal’. The insurance industry in particular has become more attentive and attuned to the time, where deep seated changes are seen throughout the fabric of the Company, also with other players adopting various strategies to cope the challenging outlook of the financial services sector, following the global outbreak of COVID-19. Navigating amidst many a challenges in this regard, HNB Assurance PLC (HNBA) and its fully owned subsidiary HNB General Insurance Limited (HNBGI) has set out well-assessed investment strategies as part of the overall business strategies deemed to add value to all stakeholders, also with the aim of supporting the country’s economy in the run up to its recovery. Sharing his views on the Company’s investment strategy and the way forward, Nilesh Amarasinghe, Chief Investment and Strategy Officer of HNBA Group stated “Having experienced a two month long freeze in certain markets, the financial sector has become wide-eyed, as efforts are now towards converting the setbacks to build a stronger foundation for more sustainable returns in the long run. As for the Group, we actively engaged in counterbalancing actions supported by the contingency planning processes that is set in place, one of which was justified by our investment in highly rated companies that led us in minimizing the effect posed by this global crisis. This is further testified by the recent affirmation of the Group’s Fitch Ratings at A (lka) for “National Insurer Financial Strength Rating”. Speaking further on the Group’s business model, Mr. Amarasinghe added, “Being a Company with a fund based portfolio, managing nearly Rs. 25 Billion funds, a robust fund management strategy is of utmost importance in value creation to our Shareholders and Policyholders, as well as in obtaining increased investment returns. As of year 2019, the Group was able to maintain an average yield of 12.3%, sourced as a result of the investment in longer tenure instruments. This generated attractive returns to our Shareholders and Policyholders, and was followed throughout the beginning of year 2020 as well, which was key in keeping these time sensitive external changes at bay. Such conscious business practices also resulted in maintaining an equity exposure that is less than 1%, despite drastic drops in interest rates. We believe that similar actions upon successful forecasting using economic indicators would support the careful allocation of our strategic assets to maximize returns effectively, which in turn would aid the market to function at its full and true potential”. HNB Assurance PLC (HNBA) is one of the fastest growing Insurance Companies in Sri Lanka with a network of 63 branches.  HNBA is a Life Insurance company with a rating of A (lka) by Fitch Ratings Lanka for “National Insurer Financial Strength Rating”. Following the introduction of the segregation rules by the Insurance Regulator, HNB General Insurance Limited (HNBGI) was created and commenced its operations in January 2015; HNBGI continues to specialize in motor, non-motor and Takaful insurance solutions and is a fully owned subsidiary of HNB Assurance PLC.  HNBA is rated within the Top 100 Brands and Top 100 companies in Sri Lanka by LMD and HNB Assurance has won International awards for Brand Excellence, Digital Marketing and HR Excellence and also won many awards for its Annual Reports at the Award ceremonies organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka and SAFA (South Asian Federation of Accountants).