The consortium is led by ASR Syndicate 2454 and supported by Lloyd’s syndicates. Credit: Simon Vayro/Shutterstock.

Africa Specialty Risks (ASR), an Africa and Middle East focused reinsurer, has established Baobab, which it refers to as the first Lloyd’s consortium dedicated to the African market. 

The consortium will provide up to $21m in capacity across several lines of insurance. 

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These include political risk, trade credit, political violence and terrorism, property, energy, construction and liability. 

The consortium, led by ASR Syndicate 2454 and backed by Lloyd’s syndicates, aims to capitalise on ASR’s regional expertise and distribution networks to facilitate access to risks in Africa and the Middle East.  

Baobab operates on a partnership model, helping syndicates planning to access Africa and emerging markets. 

The reinsurer added that it has several distribution hubs across Africa and the Middle East to support the allocation of capital in response to unmet demand. 

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ASR CEO Mikir Shah said: “Africa and the Middle East offer deep pools of opportunity for insurers but require specialist local knowledge and tailored underwriting solutions.  

“ASR can offer a unique African-focused platform which increases access to local markets while providing developing economies with additional global insurance capacity. 

“I would like to thank our Syndicate partners for supporting this consortium. We look forward to growing the Baobab Consortium in the coming months as we work to bring further meaningful global capacity to the region and accelerate sustainable economic growth.” 

The news follows the October 2024 announcement of ASR’s UK unit launching operations as a Lloyd’s service company, enabling it to underwrite on behalf of ASR Syndicate 2454. 

As of 2023, risks from Africa make up just 2% of the Lloyd’s market. 

Since its inception in 2020, ASR claims to have been involved in the de-risking of $28bn worth of projects and assets across 63 countries. 

Supported by Helios Investment Partners’ Fund IV, the company operates in London, Mauritius, Bermuda and Morocco.