Interview | Kamal Tabaja The vision is to become the reinsurer of choice not only in this region, but globally. region. They understand our business and are open to discussions, they understand why we need to do things and they give the freedom to insurance companies on how to run their business. The regulators job is to make sure that companies are compliant with the legal framework and requirements of the country. The regulator needs to intervene to make sure that the insurance sector or any financial sector does not risk failure. In Bahrain the regulators are proactive; they look at what’s happening in the market and whether they need to intervene or not. There is obviously a slowing down of economic growth recently, but things eventually will pick up and we don’t see that as an issue. There is room to develop new things in the market and that has to come as an arrangement between the regulators, the other ministries and the insurance companies by looking at what are the current challenges facing the underlying drivers for the economy. People and investors need further confidence to invest - that’s what the insurance industry is really here for… we provide security. Insurance is similar to a social fund designed for people to support each other. Going back to the Phoenicians, Silk Road or to the time of Prophet Mohammad this was common practice. When people and caravans carried their merchandise; all the merchants were to contribute. If somebody’s merchandise was stolen, the rest would pay for them… that is what insurance is and how it helped world trade and economies. We need to find where insurance can support other industries for Bahrain to develop; the regulator can have a very supportive role in this process. How would you define enterprise resilience and how relevant is it to your company? This topic is a very vast topic on a macro level and how it applies not to just insurance or finance. Enterprise resilience is how you are able to deal with things, still grow and survive when you have uncertainty in the market and uncertainty in the sources that drive your business. We have to look at different factors like human capital. If that is not adaptive to changes (because they are not able to innovate and look at alternate ways of finding solutions when there is uncertainty in the market) then you have an issue… because when things are good - everyone is happy. It is how you have proactively worked and identified your risks within and outside the organization and have set in place proper controls, protections and values to guard against any issues that come into play during challenging times. We still believe Bahrain has one of the best regulators in the region. That is the opposite for Trust Re in 2015 as they have increased profit, isn’t it? It is how you foresee the future. Insurance is underwriting the future, we have to understand our future risks and in Trust Re this what we have been very successful at. Ever since 2007 and especially since Mr. Fadi AbuNahl took over as CEO, there has been good direction and vision on how and where we want to be; not in the next 5 years, nor 10 years… but in the next 25 years and this is what we work for. When things were good, we worked very hard to make sure that we have a good market place, a good market share and were positioned in products where we can have leverage, so that when things are not good, we still have that leverage. We positioned ourselves as leaders in the market, not as followers. When you become a leader, people depend on you. So despite all the issues that have happened we are still growing, maybe not as much as we envisioned for 2015 but that’s not because we were not able to get the business, but because of a few regulation changes in some of the markets. When you have that risk culture embedded into your company and your organization, you become a completely different player because you think differently from others in the market. Today Trust Re is compared against global players even though we are not a global player. We are compared to people who are in excess of a 2 or 3 billion income, who have a much bigger global history, some of them 50 and 100 year old companies. It makes us proud that we are seen in the market as competitors or peers to these companies and that we are able to provide the same solution, if not a better solution in some of the lines of business. Particularly if you look at oil & gas where a vast majority of clients would favor Trust Re over other global players in the market. As the pleasant afternoon ended, Kamal Tabaja was sincere in his praise of the Capital Club. I think it has been quite important not just in Bahrain, I have used the Capital Club facilities in Dubai, Singapore and many different places when I travel for business. What I really enjoy is the people that you see here, they contribute and add value to what you do from a different perspective. If you want to get to know something about a different industry you can speak to the members. The entertainment and dining is excellent at any of the Capital Club facilities. The environment is pleasant and the facility is here for us as business professionals to enjoy. 30 May <strong>2016</strong>
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