City Insurance financial analysis: interest income at 66% of profit and H1 2026 profit up 66% (Oct 2026)

A marine-led insurer whose profit now comes two-thirds from interest, and whose 2026 profit jumped when agency commission stopped

What it is. City Insurance PLC (DSE: CITYGENINS, formerly City General Insurance) is a Dhaka general insurer that listed through an IPO in 2007 and raised a rights issue in 2011 [1 p.139]. It wrote Tk 939m of gross premium in 2025: 56.7% marine cargo, 33.3% fire, and the rest hull, motor and miscellaneous [1 p.394] [12]. Unlike most private insurers it keeps most of what it writes: retention was 64.7% in 2025 [12]. Sponsors and directors own 36.06% of the shares [1 p.242], and the chairman, Hossain Akhtar, represents Anwar Jute Spinning Mills and is Group Executive Director of the Anwar Group of Industries [1 p.102].

Where it stands. 2025 profit after tax rose 10.5% to Tk 232m (EPS Tk 3.40) even though underwriting profit fell 16.6% to Tk 137m, because investment and other income rose 67.5% to Tk 241m [1 p.366]. Investment income was 65.7% of pre-tax profit [12]. In the first half of 2026 the H1 accounts show no agency-commission line at all, against Tk 76m a year earlier; underwriting profit rose 52.9% and profit after tax rose 66.1% to Tk 184m (EPS Tk 2.70), while gross premium fell 13.6% [3 p.1] [12]. The DSE-announced nine-month EPS is Tk 3.65 [9]. The shares closed at Tk 130.5 on 29-Oct-2026, up 71.9% in a year [8].

What drives shareholder returns. City earns from two sources. The first is underwriting on a mostly marine book, where it keeps around two-thirds of premium and pays low claims: net claims incurred were 22.2% of net premium in 2025 and 6.5% in 2024 [12]. The second is interest on Tk 1.2bn of fixed deposits and Tk 216m of treasury bonds [1 p.391]. Because equity is 64.5% of assets [12], the investment engine is large relative to the underwriting book (net premium was only 0.38 times equity). Capital allocation is cautious: no debt, a cash dividend of Tk 1.00 a share (29.4% of 2025 EPS), and a 10%-of-net-premium appropriation to the reserve for exceptional losses each year [1 p.392].

• How much of the commission saving stays in profit? Signpost: the full Q3 2026 accounts (results announced 27-Oct-2026; filing not yet in our corpus) and the FY2026 annual report (expected around Feb-2027; the FY2025 board met 9-Feb-2026).
• How much premium did the commission change cost? Signpost: gross premium in the FY2026 accounts against Tk 939m in 2025; H1 2026 was down 13.6%.
• Is 2025 FDR interest repeatable? Signpost: note 20 (interest receivable) and note 26 (interest income) in the FY2026 annual report.
• Will SBC pay down its balance? Signpost: note 21 in the FY2026 annual report against Tk 179m at end-2025 and Tk 219m at June 2026.
• Will IDRA finalise lower expense caps? Signpost: an IDRA notification on the draft reported by TBS on 14-Sep-2025 (no date announced).

A marine-cargo insurer: 56.7% of premium from cargo, 33.3% from fire, and two-thirds retained

How it makes money. A Bangladeshi general insurer collects premium up front, cedes part of each risk to reinsurers (who return a commission), sets aside a reserve for the unexpired part of each policy, and pays claims, agency commission and management expenses from what is left. City's reserve for unexpired risks is 40% of the year's premium for fire and motor, 50% for marine cargo and miscellaneous, and 100% for marine hull [1 p.394]. The sum of the five class revenue accounts is the underwriting profit; interest, dividends and other income, less a small amount of unallocated expenses and tax, give the bottom line [1 p.392] [1 p.393].

Classes. Marine cargo is the core: Tk 532m of gross premium in 2025, 56.7% of the total, with Tk 376m kept after reinsurance [1 p.396]. Cargo insurance follows import letters of credit, so it rises and falls with the country's imports. Fire is the second line at Tk 312m (+9.5%), of which City kept 61.7% [1 p.395]. Hull premium halved to Tk 14.5m, motor was flat at Tk 20.2m, and miscellaneous (engineering, health and others) was Tk 59.2m [1 p.397] [1 p.398] [1 p.399]. Public-sector business shared with Sadharan Bima Corporation (SBC) supplied Tk 108.6m, 11.6% of gross premium, and three-quarters of miscellaneous premium [1 p.436] [12].

Reinsurance. City has a 100% treaty with SBC and places facultative cover with foreign reinsurers including New India Assurance, CICA-RE, Chubb (DIFC), QBE and Beazley [1 p.137]. The law requires 50% of reinsurable non-life business to be ceded to SBC, with the other half free to go to SBC or any other insurer at home or abroad [1 p.415]. City ceded Tk 331m in 2025, 35.3% of gross premium, and earned Tk 63m of commission plus Tk 9m of profit commission in return [1 p.394]. High retention is a deliberate choice: the company writes that high retention can signal thin reinsurance protection while low retention hurts profitability [1 p.137]. The cost of the choice showed in 2025 fire, where City kept 61.7% of the premium and therefore most of the claims.

Scale and reach. City is small. Its Tk 939m of gross premium compares with Tk 5,410m at Reliance Insurance and Tk 3,876m at Pioneer Insurance in 2025 [5 p.86] [6 p.11]. Note 36 reports 345 employees paid above Tk 10,000 and none below [1 p.437]. Gross premium jumped 66.7% in 2021 and another 21.5% in 2022, after four flat years at Tk 435-447m, then slipped 7.6% in 2023 and recovered to Tk 939m by 2025 [2 p.171] [1 p.366] [12].

Underwriting profit fell 16.6% in 2025 as fire claims rose six-fold; cargo carried the account

Claims. We measure claims as claims incurred net of reinsurance (paid, plus closing outstanding, less opening outstanding), the line in the revenue account. On that basis net claims rose from Tk 38m in 2024 to Tk 135m in 2025, or from 6.5% to 22.2% of net premium [1 p.394] [12]. Fire did it: net fire claims went from Tk 18m to Tk 110m, of which Tk 50m was still outstanding at year-end [1 p.436]. Fire swung from an underwriting profit of Tk 45m to a loss of Tk 41m [1 p.393]. The company's own 'claim ratio' (16.32% for 2025, 3.90% for 2024) uses claims paid, Tk 99m, rather than claims incurred [1 p.366] [1 p.436], so it understates the 2025 charge.

Outstanding claims. The liability for outstanding claims rose from Tk 18.7m to Tk 54.6m in 2025, faster than premium, which is one of the sector's red flags; it was back to Tk 43.0m at 30-Jun-2026 [1 p.390] [3 p.1]. The auditor names this liability as a key audit matter because it involves 'significant management judgment and risk of understatement' [1 p.387]. City does not publish an IBNR (incurred but not reported) reserve figure in the notes we read.

Marine. Cargo made Tk 179m of underwriting profit in 2025, 39.8% more than in 2024, on net claims of only Tk 22m [1 p.396]. Marine as a whole supplied 126.5% of underwriting profit, offsetting fire, hull and miscellaneous losses [1 p.138]. Over 2021-2025 marine was the profit engine in every year, between Tk 92m and Tk 189m [1 p.138]. Cargo also carries most of the cost: Tk 90.5m of agency commission and Tk 124.2m of management expenses in 2025 [1 p.396].

Agency commission. Commission paid to agents was Tk 141m in 2025 (15.0% of gross premium) and Tk 155m in 2024 (16.9%) [1 p.394] [12]. That is the line that disappeared in 2026 (next sections). Management expenses. Expenses charged to the revenue accounts were Tk 251m, 26.7% of gross premium, up 4.7% [1 p.394] [12]; a further Tk 10.7m was charged to profit and loss [1 p.392]. The management report says management expenses were brought down 'to an appreciable limit' [1 p.139], but the annual report does not state the IDRA limit or a comparison against it.

Ratios on one definition. We define the combined ratio as (net claims incurred + management expenses + agency commission - reinsurance commission including profit commission) / net premium, and use it for every peer. On this basis City's combined ratio was 74.9% in 2025 against 59.8% in 2024: a claims ratio of 22.2% plus an expense ratio of 52.7% [12]. The company prints 71.32% for 2025 and 60.22% for 2024 [1 p.366]; we could not reconcile those figures from the revenue account, so we use our own. Stamp expenses (Tk 3.6m) are left out of all ratios.

Sensitivity from history. In 2025 each 1pp of net claims ratio on City's net premium equalled Tk 6.1m of underwriting profit, about 2.6% of 2025 profit after tax before tax effects [12]. The fire claims increase alone (Tk 92m) took 15pp off the 2025 underwriting margin.

IDRA rules: no agency commission in H1 2026, possible lower expense caps, and solvency at 3.42 times

Agency commission from 1-Jan-2026. City's H1 2026 accounts show a dash in the agency-commission line, against Tk 76.2m in H1 2025 [3 p.1]. City's own 2025 annual report does not describe the regulatory change. The regulator's circular is not in our document corpus. The Business Standard reported on 24-Dec-2025 that IDRA, in a circular of 23 December, 'has scrapped the scope for paying commissions in the non-life insurance sector, suspending all individual agent licences with effect from 1 January 2026' [10]; that is a single outlet. A peer's filing gives the same date: Reliance Insurance's 2025 directors' report says 'agency commission licenses are suspended effecting from 1 January 2026 by IDRA' [5 p.77]. We therefore describe the change as the suspension of agency-commission licences from 1-Jan-2026, and the effect on City as what its own interim shows.

What it did to the lines. In H1 2026 management expenses in the revenue accounts fell 17.7% to Tk 123m and agency commission was nil, so expenses plus commission fell from 43.1% to 27.1% of gross premium [3 p.1] [12]. Underwriting profit rose 52.9% to Tk 160m even though net premium fell 23.9% [12]. The cost was premium: gross premium fell 13.6% to Tk 452m [3 p.1]. The interim does not split premium by class, so we cannot say which classes lost business. The sector spec flags one risk to watch: that commission reappears inside management expenses; City's H1 2026 management expenses fell rather than rose.

Management-expense limits. IDRA caps non-life management expenses (including commission) as a share of premium in slabs by class. The Business Standard reported on 14-Sep-2025 that IDRA had prepared a draft to cut the caps, for example from 35% to 25% on the first Tk 150m of fire and general premium and from 26% to 16% for marine, and invited comment within 15 days [11]; that is a single outlet and the draft's final status is not known to us. City's 2025 management expenses plus commission were 41.7% of gross premium [12], above every slab rate in the TBS table, but the cap is computed by slab and class and City discloses neither its allowable amount nor a compliance statement, and the auditor's report carries no remark on expense limits [1 p.386] [1 p.387]. In H1 2026 the same ratio was 27.1% [12].

Solvency. Under IDRA's solvency rules (SRO 313, 18-Sep-2024) City's available solvency margin was Tk 847m against a required Tk 248m at end-2025, a ratio of 3.42 times (3.08 in 2024) [1 p.158] [1 p.137]. The required margin more than doubled in 2024, from Tk 112m to Tk 243m, when the new rules took effect, so the ratio fell from 6.72 to 3.08 [1 p.137]. In computing the available margin City deducts the Tk 179m due from SBC and the reserve for exceptional losses is treated as a liability [1 p.158]; equity alone would give a much higher figure.

Investment income of Tk 241m was 66% of pre-tax profit; FDR interest jumped 151%

The portfolio. At end-2025 City's investment portfolio was Tk 1,680m: fixed deposits Tk 1,209m (71.9%), shares Tk 256m (15.2%) and treasury bonds Tk 216m (12.9%) [1 p.138]. The bonds are two Bangladesh Government treasury bonds at 7.98% (15-year, to 2037) and 8.75% (5-year, to 2028) [1 p.432]. By 30-Jun-2026 bonds were Tk 230m, shares Tk 280m and cash and FDRs Tk 1,339m [3 p.1]. The notes we read do not list which banks or finance companies hold the FDRs, so we cannot test the deposits against weak-bank lists.

Income. Investment and other income was Tk 241m in 2025 against Tk 144m in 2024 [1 p.393]. Interest was Tk 228m (94.5% of the total), dividends Tk 10m and share-sale gains only Tk 0.7m (Tk 23.6m in 2024) [1 p.393] [1 p.138]. FDR interest rose from Tk 84m to Tk 211m [1 p.435] while the FDR balance rose 19.7%; that is 19.1% of the average FDR balance in 2025 against 8.3% of the closing balance in 2024 [12]. Note 20 shows why: interest accrued at year-end rose from Tk 22m to Tk 146m, while cash interest received was Tk 101m [1 p.433]. The notes do not say whether accruals were previously understated or whether the 2025 figure includes catch-up; the company's own explanation for higher EPS is that 'interest income of FDR, dividend & others income have been increased significantly' [1 p.424]. The deferred tax charge on interest receivable (Tk 17.9m) confirms that the accrual is booked ahead of tax [1 p.435].

Repeatability. H1 2026 investment and other income was Tk 129m, almost double H1 2025's Tk 65m [3 p.1]. So the higher run-rate continued into 2026, but the interim does not split interest from other items. Interest income is taxed at 37.5% [1 p.435], which is why the effective tax rate rose to 36.8% in 2025 from 29.0% in 2024 [12]. Each 1pp of yield on the end-2025 FDR balance is worth about Tk 12m of pre-tax income (history-based arithmetic on Tk 1,209m) [12].

Shares. Listed shares cost Tk 317m and were worth Tk 156m at end-2025, an unrealised loss of Tk 161m [1 p.432] [12]. One holding dominates: 2.46m shares of LafargeHolcim Bangladesh (LHB) costing Tk 237m and worth Tk 115m, 73.5% of the listed book at market value [1 p.432] [12]. Fair-value changes go through other comprehensive income into an investment fluctuation fund, which was minus Tk 80m at end-2025 and minus Tk 57m at June 2026 [1 p.390] [3 p.1]; they do not pass through profit. The auditor lists the investment fluctuation fund as a key audit matter [1 p.387].

Unlisted and related holdings. City holds Tk 91m of unlisted shares in Bangladesh Finance Securities Ltd, carried at cost, and Bangladesh Finance Ltd shares costing Tk 9.6m with a market value of Tk 2.9m [1 p.432]. The chairman's profile states that he was formerly a director of Bangladesh Finance Limited and BD Finance Securities Ltd [1 p.102]. The related-party note (note 32) lists only insurance business with four director-nominating companies and does not mention these holdings [1 p.437]. An investment in GMG Airlines (Tk 10m) is being written off at Tk 1m a year from 2019 under a 2021 board decision; Tk 3m remained at end-2025 [1 p.433].

Nine-year ratios: ROE up from 6% to 15%, payout down from 79% to 29%

Growth. Gross premium grew at a compound 10.1% a year from 2017 to 2025 and profit after tax at 16.5%, from Tk 68m to Tk 232m [2 p.171] [1 p.366] [12]. Equity grew 6.2% a year. The step change came in 2021-2022, when gross premium rose from Tk 438m to Tk 888m. Margins. Underwriting profit was 22.6% of net premium in 2025, within a 2017-2025 range of 14.5% to 41.9% [12]; the 2023 peak came with a claims-paid ratio of 8.6% [1 p.366].

Returns. ROE on average equity was 15.3% in 2025, against 14.8% in 2024 and 6.4% in 2019 [12]. The company reports 14.63% on year-end equity and a return on average equity of 15.32% [1 p.366] [1 p.360]. ROE rose because profit grew faster than equity: the payout ratio fell, but premium growth and higher interest income lifted profit more. Return on average assets was 10.0% in 2025 [12].

Earnings mix. Investment and other income was 65.7% of pre-tax profit in 2025, the highest since 2021 (71.5%) and well above 2022-2023 (33-38%) [12]. The mix swings because underwriting profit swings with claims while interest rises with deposit rates. Cash conversion. Operating cash flow was Tk 295m in 2025, 1.27 times profit; it was 0.79-0.84 times in 2023-2024 and 2.48 times in 2022 [12]. Operating cash flow in H1 2026 was Tk 134m, flat on H1 2025 despite higher profit, because premium receipts fell [3 p.1].

Against Reliance, Pioneer and Asia: the highest ROE and investment share, the second-highest combined ratio

We compare City with three listed general insurers on the same definitions, using each company's own 2025 annual report: Reliance Insurance, a fire-led corporate insurer that cedes most of its premium [5 p.86] [5 p.87]; Pioneer Insurance, a larger corporate insurer [6 p.11]; and Asia Insurance, a marine-weighted insurer of similar size to City [7 p.84] [7 p.58]. The combined ratio is (net claims + management expenses + agency commission - reinsurance commission including profit commission) / net premium for all four. Asia's figures come from its segment-revenue highlights (p.84), which show underwriting profit of Tk 110.0m and management expenses of Tk 172.8m; another page of the same report (p.57) shows Tk 100.0m and Tk 170.2m, so Asia's ratios carry about 1-2pp of uncertainty.

Underwriting. City's combined ratio of 74.9% is 21.7pp above Reliance (53.1%) and 6.8pp above Pioneer (68.1%), and 2.0pp below Asia (76.9%) [12]. The gap with Reliance is mostly reinsurance commission: Reliance cedes 70.5% of its premium and earns commission worth 29.3% of its net premium, while City cedes 35.3% and earns 11.8% [12]. City's claims ratio (22.2%) is level with Reliance and below Asia (31.2%). City spends the most on management and commission as a share of gross premium (41.7%, against 17.8% at Reliance, 31.2% at Pioneer and 36.4% at Asia) [12].

Returns. City's ROE on year-end equity (14.6%) is the highest of the four, 4.0pp above Reliance (10.7%), 4.9pp above Pioneer (9.7%) and 6.6pp above Asia (8.1%) [12]. It also leans most on investment income (65.7% of pre-tax profit, against 57.6% at Reliance, 27.2% at Pioneer and 53.6% at Asia) and pays out the least (29.4% of EPS) [12]. Solvency. City's reported ratio (3.42x) is above Reliance (3.03, printed in its table with a % unit; same SRO 313 basis) and Asia (2.11x) [1 p.137] [5 p.87] [7 p.58].

These multiples are shown as facts. On 29-Oct-2026 City traded at 38.4 times 2025 EPS and 5.6 times end-2025 NAV, against 11.1-18.9 times and 1.19-1.39 times for the three peers, with a dividend yield of 0.8% [12]. On its own history the year-end P/B ranged from 1.39 (2022) to 3.76 (2025) [12]. We draw no conclusion from these numbers about whether the price is right.

Balance sheet: no debt, Tk 1.28bn of cash and deposits, Tk 179m stuck with SBC

Shape. Total assets were Tk 2,454m at end-2025, of which cash and FDRs were Tk 1,283m, treasury bonds Tk 216m and shares Tk 256m [1 p.391]. Liabilities were Tk 870m, mostly the unexpired-risk reserve (Tk 285m), premium deposits (Tk 241m), tax (Tk 141m) and sundry creditors (Tk 104m) [1 p.390]. There is no bank borrowing; the only debt-like item is a Tk 6.7m lease liability [1 p.390]. Equity of Tk 1,584m includes Tk 547m of reserve for exceptional losses [1 p.390].

The SBC receivable. Amounts due from SBC and other insurers, for public-sector business, were Tk 179m at end-2025 (11.3% of equity) [1 p.433] [12]. In 2025 City booked Tk 11m of new receivables and collected Tk 33m, 16.4% of the opening balance [1 p.433] [12]. The balance rose again to Tk 219m at 30-Jun-2026, 12.2% of equity [3 p.1] [12]. That is below the sector spec's 20%-of-equity red flag, but collection is slow, and City's management review itself says dependence on SBC 'continues to pose liquidity and settlement risks for private insurers' [1 p.132]. No provision against it is shown in the notes we read; the solvency calculation deducts it in full [1 p.158].

Other receivables. Sundry debtors of Tk 351m include Tk 212m of 'collection control' (premium on cover notes under bank guarantee still to be collected) and Tk 120m of advance income tax [1 p.433] [1 p.434]. A Tk 7.8m VAT advance has been carried since 2001 under a writ petition with no verdict yet [1 p.434]. Interest receivable rose to Tk 118m [1 p.433].

Related parties. City's related-party note lists insurance business with four companies connected to directors: A-One Polymer (Tk 9.6m), Anwar Silk Mills (Tk 1.5m), Hossain Dyeing & Printing Mills (Tk 11.9m) and Mehmud Industries (Tk 11.4m), Tk 34.4m in total, 3.7% of 2025 gross premium, on arm's-length terms according to the company [1 p.437] [12]. Each of the four nominates a director [1 p.241] [1 p.242]. The note gives premium only, with no claims paid to these parties and no 2024 comparative. Key management were paid Tk 16.1m [1 p.437].

Audit. Islam Quazi Shafique & Co. gave an unmodified opinion on the 2025 accounts on 9-Feb-2026, with key audit matters on premium income, the investment fluctuation fund, outstanding claims and sundry creditors [1 p.386] [1 p.387] [1 p.390]. The notes state that no bank guarantee was issued on behalf of the directors or the company [1 p.437].

2026 so far: H1 profit up 66% with no commission line; nine-month EPS Tk 3.65

H1 2026. Profit after tax was Tk 184m (EPS Tk 2.70) against Tk 111m (Tk 1.63) [3 p.1]. Of the Tk 119m rise in pre-tax profit, Tk 55m came from underwriting and Tk 64m from investment and other income [12]. Q2 alone earned Tk 109m (EPS Tk 1.60) against Tk 50m [3 p.1]. NAV per share was Tk 26.30 at 30-Jun-2026 after a Tk 68m cash dividend paid in the half [3 p.1]. The underwriting margin on net premium was 65.8%, against 32.8% in H1 2025 [12].

Q3 2026. The board approved Q3 results on 26-Oct-2026 and DSE published them on 27-Oct-2026: Q3 EPS Tk 0.95 (Tk 0.99 in Q3 2025), nine-month EPS Tk 3.65 (Tk 2.62 in 9M 2025), NAV per share Tk 27.12 and operating cash flow per share Tk 4.19 [9] [4 p.1]. The Q3 filing itself is not yet in our corpus, so we cannot show the lines; on the announced EPS, Q3 profit was slightly lower than a year earlier, and nine-month EPS was 39.3% higher [12].

Q4 2025 for reference. Nine-month 2025 profit was Tk 178m (EPS Tk 2.62) [4 p.1], so Q4 2025 earned about Tk 54m, while full-year fire claims rose sharply. Agency commission in Q4 2025 was about Tk 38m (Tk 141m for the year less Tk 102m for nine months) [4 p.1] [1 p.394].

Sponsors and directors own 36%; a cash dividend every year since 2018, Tk 1.00 for 2025

Ownership and board. Sponsors and directors held 36.06% of the 68.17m shares at end-2025 [1 p.242], above the 30% BSEC minimum the company cites [1 p.241] but below the 60% sponsor level the sector spec treats as a flag for insurers. The board has 15 members, including three independent directors (Mahabubul Haque; Tauhiduddin Md. Zahed, a former general manager of SBC; and Barrister Miti Sanjana) [1 p.242] [1 p.108]. Most other directors are nominees of companies: Anwar Jute Spinning Mills (3.82%), Anwar Silk Mills (3.03%), Anwar Landmark (2.00%), Khaled Iron & Steel Mills (2.73%), Hossain Dyeing & Printing Mills (3.03%), Wazeefa Acrylic Spinning Mills (2.41%), Mehmud Industries (2.00%) and A-One Polymer (2.05%) [1 p.241] [1 p.242]. Three of these carry the Anwar name, together 8.85%, and the chairman and director Faizah Mehmood both hold executive roles at the Anwar Group of Industries [1 p.102] [1 p.104]. Vice chairman Mohd. Abu Taher (3.03%) chairs Taher & Company and the Golden group of companies [1 p.102]. The largest individual holder on the list is sponsor shareholder Hossain Mehmood (5.88%) [1 p.241].

Board practice. The board met five times in 2025 [1 p.437]. Non-executive directors receive Tk 8,000 per meeting, Tk 784,000 in total for 2025 [1 p.139]. City publishes a compliance statement against IDRA's Insurers' Corporate Governance Guidelines 2023 [1 p.329]. CRISL rated City's claim-paying ability AAA (stable) on 29-Jul-2025, valid to 28-Jul-2026; the rating was AA+ in 2022-2023 and A+ in 2017-2018 [1 p.361]. A renewal after July 2026 is not in our sources.

Dividends. City paid a 10% stock dividend for 2017 (paid-up capital rose from Tk 620m to Tk 682m) [1 p.299] [2 p.171], then cash every year: 10% for 2018, 5% for 2019, 10% for 2020 and 2021, 10.5% for 2022, 12% for 2023 and 10% for 2024 [1 p.299] [1 p.366]. For 2025 the board recommended 10% cash (Tk 1.00 a share, Tk 68.2m) on 9-Feb-2026 [1 p.437]; the record date was 4-Mar-2026 and the AGM 30-Mar-2026 [9]. The payout fell from 59.5% of EPS in 2021 to 29.4% in 2025 because the dividend stayed flat while EPS doubled [12]. Tax law requires listed companies to set aside at least 30% of profit after tax as 'amount to be distributed as dividend' (Tk 69.5m for 2025), which the 2025 dividend roughly matches [1 p.437].

Share price. The shares rose from Tk 75.9 on 29-Oct-2025 to Tk 130.5 on 29-Oct-2026; the 52-week range was Tk 70.2-135.0 [8]. Market value at the close was about Tk 8.9bn [12]. Daily volume fell through 2026, from several hundred thousand shares a day in late 2025 to tens of thousands in October 2026 [8].

What will move the lines next: commission gone, premium lower, interest high, SBC slow

These are the known events that will move City's income-statement lines, with dates and sources. We do not forecast numbers.

Commission and premium. The H1 2026 accounts already show the direct effect: commission went to nil and underwriting profit rose 52.9%, while gross premium fell 13.6% [3 p.1] [12]. Part of the business that agents brought in did not come back through other channels in the first half. Management expenses fell too, so in H1 2026 there was no sign of commission moving into the expense line. Whether premium recovers depends on how corporate and import customers buy cover without agents, which the interim does not show.

Interest income. 2025 investment income was lifted by much higher FDR interest and accruals [1 p.433] [1 p.435], and H1 2026 investment income almost doubled again [3 p.1]. The line moves with deposit rates and the FDR balance; with FDRs at Tk 1.2bn, each 1pp of yield moved pre-tax income by about Tk 12m on the 2025 balance [12].

Claims. Fire, where City keeps about 62% of premium, produced the 2025 loss [1 p.137] [1 p.395]. A large fire claim would hit City harder than a peer that cedes most of its fire book; marine cargo has been profitable in each of the last five years [1 p.138].

Risks: lost premium, interest income that may not repeat, retained fire risk, and slow SBC payments

The largest risk to reported profit is that the two things that lifted it in 2025-2026 fade together. Investment income was 65.7% of 2025 pre-tax profit [12] and rested on FDR interest that jumped far faster than the deposit balance [1 p.435]; the 2026 underwriting gain rests on a commission line that went to nil while premium fell [3 p.1]. City's high retention means that when a large fire happens it pays most of it: in 2025 net fire claims rose from Tk 18m to Tk 110m on Tk 193m of net fire premium [1 p.395]. Finally the share book is concentrated in one cement company, and the unrealised loss there already equals 10.2% of equity [12].

• Full Q3 2026 accounts (results announced 27-Oct-2026): gross premium and management expenses for nine months.
• FY2026 annual report (expected around Feb-2027; FY2025 board met 9-Feb-2026): notes 20, 21 and 26, class revenue accounts, outstanding claims.
• IDRA's final management-expense rules (no date announced).
• CRISL rating renewal (previous rating valid to 28-Jul-2026).
• LafargeHolcim Bangladesh share price, which drives 73.5% of the listed book.

Nine-year history

Figures for 2017-2020 are from the 2022 annual report's comparative table and for 2021-2025 from the 2025 annual report's five-year summary [2 p.171] [1 p.366]; the two agree for 2021 and 2022. The five-year 'net claims' line in the 2025 report is claims paid, not incurred [1 p.436]. The 2022 solvency ratio is printed as 5.01 on p.366 and 5.50 on p.137; available over required margin gives 5.50 [1 p.137] [12].

FAQ

Why did City Insurance's profit rise in 2025?

Investment and other income rose 67.5% to Tk 241m, mainly FDR interest (Tk 211m against Tk 84m). Underwriting profit fell 16.6% to Tk 137m because net fire claims rose from Tk 18m to Tk 110m. Profit after tax rose 10.5% to Tk 232m (EPS Tk 3.40).

What happened to City Insurance's agency commission in 2026?

The H1 2026 accounts show no agency commission, against Tk 76m in H1 2025. The Business Standard reported that IDRA suspended individual agent licences in non-life insurance from 1-Jan-2026, and Reliance Insurance's annual report gives the same date. City's underwriting profit rose 52.9% in H1 2026 while gross premium fell 13.6%.

What is City Insurance's combined ratio?

74.9% in 2025 on net claims incurred plus management expenses plus agency commission less reinsurance commission, over net premium (59.8% in 2024). The company prints 71.32%.

What dividend did City Insurance pay for 2025?

Tk 1.00 a share (10% cash), 29.4% of EPS. It has paid a cash dividend every year since 2018; 2017 was a 10% stock dividend.

Is City Insurance solvent under IDRA rules?

Yes. Its available solvency margin was Tk 847m against a required Tk 248m at end-2025, a ratio of 3.42 times.

Sources

1. City Insurance PLC Integrated Annual Report 2025 (corpus CITYGENINS_ANNUAL_2025, PDF page numbers) · link · accessed 2026-10-31
2. City General Insurance Company Limited Annual Report 2022 (comparative analysis 2017-2022, p.171) · link · accessed 2026-10-31
3. City Insurance PLC un-audited second-quarter financial statements to 30-Jun-2026 · link · accessed 2026-10-31
4. City Insurance PLC un-audited third-quarter financial statements to 30-Sep-2025 · link · accessed 2026-10-31
5. Reliance Insurance PLC Annual Report 2025 (peer; directors' report p.77, summary p.86-87) · link · accessed 2026-10-31
6. Pioneer Insurance PLC Annual Report 2025 (peer; five-year summary p.11) · link · accessed 2026-10-31
7. Asia Insurance PLC Annual Report 2025 (peer; five-year data p.58, segment highlights p.84) · link · accessed 2026-10-31
8. AnalystBro market data: DSE daily bars for CITYGENINS, RELIANCINS, PIONEERINS and ASIAINS to 29-Oct-2026 · link · accessed 2026-10-31
9. DSE announcements via AnalystBro events: LR19 board meeting 9-Feb-2026, record date 4-Mar-2026, AGM 30-Mar-2026, Q2 results 29-Jul-2026, Q3 results 27-Oct-2026 (9M EPS Tk 3.65, NAV Tk 27.12) · link · accessed 2026-10-31
10. The Business Standard, 'IDRA scraps commission payments in non-life insurance sector', 24 Dec 2025 · link · accessed 2026-10-31
11. The Business Standard, 'IDRA moves to reduce management expenses in non-life insurance', 14 Sep 2025 · link · accessed 2026-10-31
12. AnalystBro history and ratio model for CITYGENINS (model.xlsx, the workbook below) · link · accessed 2026-10-31