Santam Curt Meyer Appointment Drives South African Insurer’s Global Push
SOUTH AFRICA · BUSINESS
Key Facts
- —What happened Santam created a new executive role for international growth and named Curt Meyer to lead it.
- —The context Santam is South Africa’s largest general insurer, listed in Johannesburg, and wants 30% of premiums abroad by 2030.
- —Why it matters Foreign income can offset bad home years, and investors and expats gain another specialist insurer option.
- —The catch Santam named no new countries, budget or timeline, and each market still needs its own licence.
- —Who it affects JSE investors, brokers placing cross-border risks, and companies and expats with African, Indian or Middle East projects.
- —What comes next Full-year 2026 results will show whether foreign premiums rise above 23% of the total.
A new Pan-Africa and international post at Santam’s specialist unit shows where the Cape Town insurer wants its next growth to come from.
South African insurer Santam has created a new executive role to grow its business abroad and named Curt Meyer to lead it. The Santam Curt Meyer appointment was announced by the company on Monday, 14 September 2026.
What Santam announced
Meyer becomes Executive Head of Pan-Africa and International within Santam Specialist Solutions (SSS). SSS is the group’s business unit for specialist and complex risks.
Santam called it a dedicated new executive role for international growth. Its focus is selected Pan-African and international markets, including the Middle East, India and South-East Asia.
Santam describes itself as South Africa’s largest general insurer. It is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), and financial services group Sanlam is its majority shareholder.
Who Curt Meyer is
Santam says Meyer has more than two decades of experience in the insurance industry. He was once chief executive of Mirabilis Engineering Insurance Specialists, Santam’s construction and engineering division.
Most recently he headed corporate property, construction and engineering, and marine insurance within SSS. He holds a BA in law and an MBA from Milpark Business School.
Gareth Beaver, chief executive of SSS, praised Meyer’s record. “Curt brings extensive leadership experience, strong technical expertise and deep commercial insight within the specialist insurance sector,” he said.
Beaver called the appointment “an important milestone” in Santam’s effort to broaden its reach. He said Santam wants to enhance the value it delivers outside South Africa.
What the Santam Curt Meyer appointment is meant to do
Meyer said the new job lets him focus fully on three areas. These are Santam’s GIFT City office in India, its collaboration through Sanlam Allianz, and other international opportunities.
“We are building a scalable platform for growth,” he said. He added that Santam wants a stronger presence in priority markets and to support partners with specialist risk cover.
GIFT City, or Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, is India’s international financial hub. Santam received a reinsurance branch licence there in January 2026 from India’s International Financial Services Centres Authority.
Santam said it was the first insurer based in a BRICS country to set up in GIFT City. BRICS is the bloc of emerging economies that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Sanlam Allianz is a joint venture between Sanlam and the German insurer Allianz. It launched in 2023 and offers insurance and financial services in 27 African countries outside South Africa.
Why Santam is looking beyond South Africa
International growth is a key pillar of Santam’s FutureFit 2030 strategy. The company wants international operations to contribute 30% of gross written premium by 2030.
In the six months to 30 June 2026, premiums written outside South Africa made up 23% of the total. A year earlier, that share was 20%.
That foreign business grew 25% to R5.3 billion (US$326 million), at 18 September 2026 rates. Santam’s conventional gross written premium rose 10% over the same period.
The half-year also showed the risk of depending on one home market. Catastrophe and other large losses, driven mainly by severe South African weather, reached R1.5 billion (US$92 million) after reinsurance.
Even so, Santam raised its interim dividend by 10.2% to 650 cents (about US$0.40) a share. Headline earnings per share rose 7% to 2,006 cents (about US$1.23).
Santam also started writing business through its own Lloyd’s of London syndicate, Syndicate 1918, on 1 January 2026. The group says it is the only African-headquartered participant at Lloyd’s.
Why this matters to expats and investors
For investors in JSE-listed financial shares, the new role shows where Santam hopes future growth will come from. Income from several regions can soften a bad year at home, such as heavy weather losses.
For companies and expats running projects in Africa, India or the Middle East, another specialist insurer adds choice. That matters most for engineering, construction, property and marine risks.
Brokers placing large cross-border risks also gain one senior contact at Santam. Whether that brings better prices or terms will depend on each local market.
What Santam has not said
Santam has not named any new countries it plans to enter because of the new role. It has not published a budget, hiring plan or timeline for the function.
It is also unclear how the role will share work with the GIFT City office, the Lloyd’s syndicate and Sanlam Allianz. Insurance is licensed country by country, so each new market needs local approval.
Foreign income also carries currency risk. Premiums earned in other currencies can lose or gain value when converted back into rand.
What to watch next
The clearest test will be Santam’s results for the full 2026 financial year. Investors will look at whether the international share rises above 23%.
Any new licences, partnerships or offices in the target regions would show the plan moving forward. For now, Santam is building steadily from the foreign base it already has.
More: South Africa news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Curt Meyer?
He is Santam’s new Executive Head of Pan-Africa and International. He previously led Mirabilis Engineering Insurance Specialists and Santam’s corporate property, engineering and marine business.
Which markets will he focus on?
Selected African markets, plus the Middle East, India and South-East Asia. Santam has not named specific new countries.
How big is Santam’s international business?
It made up 23% of gross written premium in the first half of 2026. Santam is aiming for 30% by 2030.
Connected Coverage
Strong rand and weather claims hit Sanlam earnings
Sanlam Steps Into Banking With GoTyme, Following Old Mutual and Discovery
Sources: Santam Group media release, 14 September 2026; Santam interim results for the six months to 30 June 2026; Santam GIFT City licence release, 19 February 2026; Allianz; Bizcommunity; Insurance Business.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
LatAm Markets: Live Signals → — real-time movers, turnover leaders and FX across Latin America.