Insurance companies in the next two years will also have to increase their stated capital though not by the same margin as banks. While the banks are to increase to $60 million in two years, the insurance companies are to increase to $5 million, five times the current level. This, according to the regulator, should help position them to underwrite much bigger risks especially as commercial oil production begins. Acting Insurance Commissioner, Mrs Nyamikeh Kyiamah, however, says the commission is still engaging operators to see whether the increase should be gradual or all at once. “Basically, we think that the level of $1 million does not allow us to expand the market. We need to expand our capital base so that we’ll be able to do more business, not just the oil and gas but all the mega risks that come about,” Mrs Kyiamah said. President of the association of Insurance Companies and SIC Managing Director Ben Acolatse however believes the increase should be immediate. “We need to do it and we must do it now. There must be a little bit of a sense of urgency,” he stressed. Source: Joy Business/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana