Sanlam Highlights Strategy, Growth Ambitions and Revised Financial Goals at 2025 Capital Markets Day
Sanlam today hosted its 2025 Capital Markets Day during which the group’s executives reaffirmed its growth strategy and position as a leading financial services group in the emerging markets.
Themed “Leveraging Quality, Accelerating Growth,” the event highlighted Sanlam’s strong foundations, ambitious growth vectors and commitment to deliver sustainable, long-term value for clients, shareholders and diverse stakeholders.
Leveraging quality, accelerating growth
Sanlam outlined the next chapter of its growth towards 2030, which is built on three strategic pillars:
Strengthening market positioning in South Africa by enhancing ecosystems through innovations such as the Sanlam Group App and deepening partnerships with TymeBank which was recently recognised by TIME Magazine as one of the world’s most influential companies
Scaling international growth through its 20-plus-year partnership with Shriram in India, the pan-African SanlamAllianz joint venture and entry into the Lloyd’s market via Syndicate 1918, a nod to the founding year of Sanlam’s short-term insurer, Santam
Embedding sustainability through which financial inclusion, skills development and climate resilience are integrated into all business practices
Sanlam further set out its new medium-term financial targets to 2030, including:
Minimum 6% real earnings growth per annum;
Minimum 4% real dividend growth per annum; and
ROE greater than 20%
Growth vectors: South Africa, India, Pan-Africa and Lloyd’s
Sanlam executives outlined how the Group will leverage high-growth opportunities across core markets:
South Africa: Despite a challenging macroeconomic backdrop, Sanlam continues to gain market share across product lines, maintaining best-in-class margins. The Group is developing an ecosystem approach to the South African market, to make financial services more accessible to consumers, to provide greater value for money to consumers and to make managing finances easier;
India: The 21-year-old Shriram partnership is driving strong expansion across credit, insurance, asset management and wealth management, with operating profit expected to grow at SA CPI plus 10% between 2025 and 2030;
Pan-Africa: SanlamAllianz aims to more than double earnings by 2030, capitalising on low insurance penetration, rapid GDP growth and a young, vibrant, digitally connected population; and
Lloyd’s Market: Through Santam Syndicate 1918, Sanlam will scale its specialist insurance capability globally with underwriting expected to commence in January 2026
A confident future
Sanlam Group CEO, Mr Paul Hanratty, said: “Sanlam is uniquely positioned as a quality growth stock. With strong platforms, prudent capital allocation and bold growth vectors across South Africa, India and Pan-Africa, we are confident of delivering attractive returns while supporting inclusive prosperity. Our purpose remains our driving force and that is to help our clients build and protect their wealth, and to allow continuity to future generations.
Africa update: SanlamAllianz aims to more than double earnings by 2030
SanlamAllianz, the pan-African joint venture between Sanlam and Allianz, aims to more than double earnings by 2030, reinforcing its position as the continent’s premier insurance group outside South Africa.
SanlamAllianz CEO, Mr Heinie Werth, said: “Africa represents one of the most compelling long-term growth opportunities in the global insurance landscape. With low penetration, strong GDP growth and a youthful, digitally connected population, the continent is poised for transformation. SanlamAllianz combines Sanlam’s local expertise with Allianz’s global scale to lead that journey.”
Strong foundations
SanlamAllianz is executing bold ambitions from a position of undeniable strength. As Africa’s largest insurer, it operates in 26 countries, commanding top three positions in 18 general and 15 life insurance markets. With a 16% market share in both segments, SanlamAllianz is not just present in Africa, it is a market leader.
In the first half of 2025, the SanlamAllianz business delivered strong results despite a volatile macroeconomic environment:
Attributable earnings rose 124% to R3.8 billion;
General insurance premiums increased by 8% year-on-year to R19.4 billion; and
Life insurance premiums grew 10% to R13.4 billion
Capturing the demographic dividend
Africa’s GDP growth trajectory exceeds most global regions, with East and West Africa expected to be the main engines into 2030. At the same time, the continent’s young population, with 70% under the age of 35, and mobile penetration of 89%, is creating unprecedented opportunities for financial inclusion.
Werth noted, “The fundamentals are compelling: strong GDP growth, low insurance penetration, and a booming, youthful population. SanlamAllianz is primed to turn this potential into sustained value, by delivering relevant products, scaling smart distribution, and building digital ecosystems that bring insurance within reach of millions more Africans.”
Growth strategy
SanlamAllianz aims to more than double earnings by 2030, driven by:
Completing integration of the Sanlam and Allianz businesses and capturing synergies across its footprint;
Defending and growing market share, with a focus on achieving and retaining top three positions in each market;
Selectively entering new high-potential markets and exiting unattractive ones;
Enhancing bancassurance partnerships and agency networks; and
Driving cost and capital efficiencies through shared expertise and innovation
India update: Unlocking value in a fast-growing financial services sector
Sanlam’s long-standing partnership with the Shriram Group is unlocking significant opportunities in India, one of the world’s fastest-growing financial services markets.
Sanlam Group Executive: Strategy, Mr David Marshall, said: “India is a cornerstone of Sanlam’s growth strategy. With its young population, rapidly expanding middle class, and accelerating digital adoption, the country represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity. Our partnership with Shriram has created a unique and complementary ecosystem – one that positions us to capture this growth in a sustainable and inclusive way.”
Building on two decades of quality partnership
Sanlam has partnered with Shriram for over 20 years, creating a trusted platform deeply rooted in rural and semi-urban communities. Together, the companies serve more than 32 million customers across credit, insurance, asset management and wealth management services, supported by more than 4,650 branches and over 125,000 agents.
This wide footprint, founded on trust and community relationships, provides Sanlam with a competitive advantage in markets that are underserved by traditional banks and insurers.
Expanding the ecosystem
The Shriram ecosystem has grown from credit into insurance, asset management, and most recently wealth management:
Credit and lending: Shriram Finance is India’s second-largest retail non-banking financial company, with a loan book of around R550 billion. It is particularly strong in pre-owned commercial vehicle and two-wheeler financing;
Insurance: Shriram General Insurance and Shriram Life Insurance are among the fastest-growing players in India, with life new business premiums growing over 36% and general insurance premiums growing over 28% a year over the past three years; and
Wealth and asset management: Sanlam and Shriram have launched a 50:50 joint venture to meet the rising demand for wealth creation solutions. India’s asset management market, currently USD 660 billion, is expected to double by 2030.
Marshall noted: “As India prospers, so do Shriram’s customers. We are ensuring that we grow with them, moving from initially financing vehicles to providing general insurance for their vehicles, then moving into life insurance and now helping them build long-term wealth.”
Harnessing digital scale in the Shriram ecosystem
A key driver of this growth is the Shriram One app, which has been downloaded by over 19 million users, two-thirds of whom are new to the Shriram ecosystem.
The app combines lifestyle services with financial products, reducing customer acquisition costs and enabling tailored engagement in seven regional languages.
Long-term ambitions
Sanlam expects its India operations to deliver growth at SA CPI plus 10% between 2025 and 2030, with plans to add 10 million new customers over the next five years.
The group has capitalised the wealth and asset management businesses for growth, expecting them to break even by year five and be self-funding thereafter.
Marshall concluded: “India will remain one of Sanlam’s most important growth engines. The combination of Shriram’s deep local expertise and distribution strength with Sanlam’s technical capabilities and long-term capital creates a powerful platform. We are confident that this partnership will deliver meaningful value to our customers, generate strong returns for our shareholders, and contribute to India’s broader objective of advancing financial inclusion.”