At a glance: Ecuador's top 5 insurers

Thirty-four insurers were operating in Ecuador last month.

Among them were local players such as state heavyweight Seguros Sucre and subsidiaries of foreign companies like Mapfre and Liberty.

Ecuador, the region's eighth largest economy, punches just above its weight in terms of premium volume.

Last year, the total premium volume in Ecuador in US dollars was US$1.62bn, according to data from reinsurer Swiss Re.

While the figure is tiny compared with Brazil's US$72.6bn, Ecuador is the No. 7 player in the region by premium volume in US dollars. However last year the country suffered the biggest contraction of all in nominal and real terms in the region, at 27.5% and 28.7%, respectively. Swiss Re cited natural disasters such as the April 2016 earthquake as contributing factors.

And the country experienced severe flooding this year, which may dent 2017 premium volume.

Ecuador posted US$347mn in life premium volume in 2016 (down from US$355mn) and US$1.27bn in non-life premium volume (down from US$1.88bn).

Premiums per capita in US dollars in Ecuador were low, at US$98.8 compared with US$346 for Brazil and US$643 for Chile, which is seen as having one of the most mature markets in the region. Only the Dominican Republic and Guatemala had lower figures, at US$82.6 and US$48.4, respectively.

The Swiss Re report does not include data for Venezuela.

This month, local paper Expreso reported that the combined capital of the sector was US$245mn, up from just over US$100mn three years ago, after authorities ordered insurers to increase their capital by at least US$8mn.

At least four firms may not have met the requirements by the September 12 deadline, the paper said, citing local insurance association Fedeseg.

Panelists surveyed by research firm Focus Economics forecast this month that Ecuador's GDP would expand 0.6% this year and 0.9% next. A healthier oil export market could spur growth, although the country has recently experienced political turmoil which could impact economic prospects.

TOP 5

No. 1

The biggest player was state-run P&C and life insurer Seguros Sucre, which reported US$127mn in net written premiums for August, giving it a 12% market share, down from 14% in August 2015, according to data from regulator Supercias.

No. 2

Another local player, P&C insurer Equinoccial, held the No. 2 spot, posting US$101mn, giving it a 10% market share, flat compared with last year.

No. 3

The local unit of global P&C giant Chubb posted US$94.8mn, giving it a 9% market share, up from 8%.

No. 4

Local life and P&C insurer Pichincha held No. 4 spot, posting US$81.7mn, for an 8% market share, up from 7%.

No. 5

The local unit of global general insurer and reinsurer QBE Colonial posted US$77.6mn, giving it a market share of 7%, down from 9%.