In 2015, HNB General Insurance entered a market already crowded with established players, with a simple wager: that insurance built around the customer, rather than the product, would win out. A decade on, the numbers back that wager. The company crossed Rs11 billion in Gross Written Premium in 2025, growing 21% year-on-year against an industry average of 15%, and earning a Fitch upgrade to A(lka) along the way.
That pace was deliberate. The company introduced the dedicated four-digit hotline, 1303, reflecting its commitment to delivering greater convenience and seamless customer support; implemented its core insurance system, strengthening its operational efficiency and the overall quality of customer service; and held its claims bill from Cyclone Ditwah to a fraction of its initial cost through reinsurance planning. Each decision reflects a broader bet on technology, resilience and people as the drivers of growth, not scale for its own sake.
In this conversation, Sithumina Jayasundara, Chief Executive Officer, and Dilshan Perera, Chief Operating Officer, at HNB General Insurance, talk through the turning points that shaped the company’s identity, the philosophy behind its growth, and what they want the brand to represent over the next decade.
HNBGI has grown significantly in just over a decade. When you look back, what were the turning points that truly shaped the company’s identity and growth journey?
Sithumina Jayasundara: We set out in 2015 with a clear ambition, to challenge conventional insurance by building a general insurer that was customer-centric, agile and driven by innovation from day one. Becoming part of the HNB Group gave us an immediate foundation to build on. It brought credibility, customer confidence and access to a customer ecosystem.
From there, we focused on reach. We expanded our branch network islandwide and backed that expansion with strong partnerships with leading conglomerates, so that no matter where a customer was in the country, our services stayed accessible. Alongside physical reach, we invested heavily in digital transformation, simplifying customer journeys while making our operations more efficient and our service delivery faster.
Growth, though, was never going to be linear. We navigated the COVID-19 pandemic, an economic crisis, sustained inflationary pressures and natural disasters, all while continuing to grow the business. Getting through those years reinforced something we’ve come to see as central to our identity: long-term success is ultimately driven by people. Investing in talent development, building leadership capability and fostering an inclusive workplace culture have become key differentiators for us, and they remain at the heart of how we think about the next phase of our growth.
HNBGI crossed Rs11 billion in Gross Written Premium within just ten years. What do you believe were the key decisions, shifts, or philosophies that helped transform the company from an emerging player into a brand with growing national relevance?
Sithumina: It was a significant milestone for us, and what made it more meaningful was the pace behind it. We grew 21% year-on-year, well ahead of the industry’s 15% growth. But that number alone doesn’t tell the full story of how we got there.
We grew steadily across Motor, Fire, Marine and Miscellaneous segments, which reduced our concentration risk and gave us a more sustainable base to build on, rather than leaning too heavily on any one line of business. At the same time, we stayed disciplined. Underwriting discipline and prudent risk management have remained non-negotiable for us, even as we’ve pushed for profitable growth and long-term stability.
Technology has played a central role too. We’ve invested consistently in improving operational efficiency, claims handling and the overall customer experience, because we’ve always believed that how a customer experiences us during a claim shapes how they see us as a brand. And underlying all of this has been a mindset shift: we’ve tried to treat every challenge, whether market-driven or internal, as an opportunity to improve our products, processes and service delivery, rather than simply reacting to conditions as they come.
None of this would have been possible without our people. We’ve worked to build a culture where employees are empowered to make decisions, innovate and take ownership of outcomes, and that empowerment has translated directly into better experiences for our customers.
How important are partnerships in enabling HNBGI to deliver innovative insurance solutions?
Dilshan Perera: Innovation today is increasingly built through strategic partnerships that combine complementary strengths, rather than through any one company trying to do it all independently. Accordingly, we have forged strategic partnerships with many of Sri Lanka’s leading conglomerates and institutions, as well as international partners, to deliver greater value, expand our reach and enhance customer experiences. These collaborations enable us to leverage shared expertise, technology and distribution capabilities to make insurance more accessible, relevant and convenient, while creating sustainable value for customers and stakeholders alike.
Parametric insurance itself represents a shift in how we think about protection. It moves us towards faster, more transparent, technology-enabled cover, which matters most for customers whose livelihoods depend on unpredictable weather conditions. Digital platforms remove many of the traditional barriers to insurance adoption, making the process more convenient and allowing us to reach customer segments that have been underserved.
Going forward, we intend to keep exploring these kinds of ecosystem partnerships, ones that bring together technology, data and insurance expertise, so we can continue developing customer-centric solutions for the needs that emerge across Sri Lankan society.
Events like Cyclone Ditwah test more than operational capability; they test trust, responsiveness, and brand credibility. What did that experience reveal about the culture and values that drive the organisation?
Dilshan: Moments of crisis reveal an organisation’s true culture far more than business as usual ever does, and Cyclone Ditwah was one of those moments for us. When it hit, customer support became our highest priority, and that demanded speed, empathy and decisive action from everyone involved. We focused on rapid claims response, efficient assessment processes and timely settlements, and that combination reinforced customer trust at a time when it mattered most.
What stood out to me was how our teams came together. We saw strong cross-functional collaboration across branches, operations, claims and customer service, with leadership ensuring coordinated support despite the operational challenges we were facing. Employees consistently went beyond their defined responsibilities. One example has stayed with me: even though many of our own employees were personally affected by Ditwah, a call centre team remained on-site for three consecutive days while the rest of the team continued supporting customers remotely, ensuring we maintained uninterrupted 24/7 customer assistance throughout.
That experience validated the investments we had made in business continuity planning, operational resilience and preparedness for large-scale disruptions. It also reminded us that those investments only mean something when the people behind them choose, in the moment, to show up for our customers.
HNBGI’s rise in the industry reflects strong momentum, but beyond growth and rankings, what do you ultimately want the brand to stand for in the minds of Sri Lankans over the next decade?
Dilshan: Beyond the growth and the rankings, what we ultimately want is to be recognised as Sri Lanka’s most trusted and dependable general insurance partner, present for our customers at every stage of their lives. That means continuing to redefine what insurance looks like: making it more accessible, more customer-centric, and relevant to changing lifestyles and the emerging risks people face today.
We also want to keep expanding insurance inclusion, developing solutions that serve mainstream and underserved communities alike, because we believe good insurance shouldn’t be limited to those who already have easy access to it. None of that is possible without the right people, so we remain committed to fostering a high-performing, people-first workplace that attracts, develops and retains exceptional talent.
Ultimately, the legacy we want to build isn’t defined by market leadership alone. It’s about creating lasting, positive impact for our customers, our employees, our partners and the wider Sri Lankan community over the next decade and beyond.