Rabat – Societe Centrale de Reassurance (SCR) has acquired the necessary authorization from Morocco’s Insurance and Social Security Supervisory Authority (ACAPS) to launch “Retakaful” reinsurance services, an insurance institution part of the Islamic banking system.
SCR is the reinsurance arm of the CDG Group, Morocco’s state-owned fund that manages the country’s long-term savings. It is also the leading reinsurance institution in the country.
After locking the approval for this new venture, SCR will now diversify its offer and gain a new base of customers from the country’s Islamic financing sector, the group said in a press release.
Speaking on the backdrop of gaining the approval from the country’s insurance watchdog, SCR’s Management said that the approval is in line with the company’s “ambitions for its activities’ growth and expansion.”
With the new approval, which is Morocco’s first Retakaful venture, SCR will use its “Retakaful” services in Morocco to become a major player in the country’s Islamic reinsurance market, the company said.
Morocco’s Islamic financing system is a relatively new enterprise. Since its debut in 2018, Islamic or participative banking has maintained a record for the highest annual growth rate within any sub banking sector.
However, the country had only welcomed its first Islamic insurance institution in 2021, with the launch of Takafulia Assurance.
Islamic or participative funding in Morocco is especially in high demand when it comes to housing loans.
Demand for participative financing for housing grew at an annual rate of 32% in 2021, according to data from Morocco’s central bank, Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM).
Despite the notable growth, the country’s Islamic banking landscape remains underdeveloped and has a long way to go before it can become competitive with Islamic funding institutions in the Middle East.
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