Mr. R.W. Grater from Phoenix Assurance Company UK appointed to run the company’s agency in Nairobi, becoming one of the first foreign insurance companies to be represented in East Africa.

A full branch of the company was eventually established in Nairobi in 1954. The company grew rapidly and Phoenix ranked high among the leading companies in the region.

Phoenix of East Africa Assurance Company Ltd. was formed in partnership with the local agent A. J. Miller & Sons Ltd. Initially, Kenyans only held 11% of the shares. By 1980 the Kenyan participation had grown to one-third to the shareholding.

Phoenix of East Africa Assurance and the Sun Alliance Group U.K. merged in the United Kingdom and the Kenyan operation was renamed Sun Alliance Insurance Company Limited.

The local shareholders took control of the company, reconstituted the company board and the name was reverted back to the original Phoenix of East Africa Assurance Company Limited (PEAL) resulting in the dawn of a new era for the company. The Company had a majority of local shareholders, with the Alibhai family holding 81% of the shares.

As a step towards becoming a regional insurer, Phoenix of Rwanda Assurance Company Ltd was licensed and began operating in 2006.

Launch of MUA’s operations in the Seychelles

Following regulatory changes which came into effect in 2012, the Alibhai family sold their shares to Mauritius Union (now MUA), a leading insurance company in Mauritius, which was established in 1948. The group now employs over 790 people, with agencies and branches in Mauritius, the Seychelles, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya.

The various subsidiaries of the Mauritius Union group, including Phoenix of Rwanda Assurance Company Ltd, came together under a single, regional and dynamic insurance brand – MUA.