Banks, insurance and Islamic finance
Somali takaful companies: FISO, Takaful Africa and the licensed insurers
Takaful is Islamic insurance, in which members pool money to cover each other's losses. Somalia had no working insurance company for more than 20 years after 1991. Takaful Africa, founded in Kenya, opened in Somalia in mid-2013, and First Somali Takaful (FISO) opened in Mogadishu in December 2014. In November 2026 the Central Bank of Somalia listed 8 licensed takaful operators, and FISO's chairman said in May 2026 that Somalia's insurance law was signed in 2025.
The short version
Takaful is a form of insurance that follows Islamic rules: members pay into a shared fund, which pays out when one of them has a loss, instead of buying a policy from a company. After 1991 Somalia had no working insurance company for more than twenty years (Wikipedia, Islamic Insurance Company). Since 2013 a small number of takaful companies have opened, and the Central Bank of Somalia now licenses them.
Takaful Africa
FISO (First Somali Takaful)
First Somali Takaful Insurance, known as FISO and listed on Wikipedia as the Islamic Insurance Company, opened in Mogadishu in December 2014 as the first full-service insurer in Somalia in more than 20 years. It offers life, vehicle and property cover (Wikipedia, Islamic Insurance Company). In a May 2026 interview its chairman and founder, Mohamed Abdi, known as M. Takaful, said many people first thought insurance would not work in Somalia. He said FISO now covers motor, travel, marine and cargo, engineering, health and farming risks, that seven insurers were working in Somalia and had formed an association, and that the country's insurance law, drafted from 2018, was signed in 2025 (Dawan Africa, 16 May 2026).
Licensed takaful operators
In November 2026 the Central Bank of Somalia's register listed 8 takaful operators: Amanah Insurance, Baraka Takaful, FISO Insurance, Kobciye Insurance, Salmastar Insurance, Takaaful Africa, Tamini Insurance and Wadaag Insurance of Hargeisa (Central Bank of Somalia, licensed takaful operators).
Related
Sources
- Wikipedia, Islamic Insurance Company · en.wikipedia.org
- Dawan Africa, 16 May 2026 · dawan.africa
- Central Bank of Somalia, licensed takaful operators · centralbank.gov.so
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Where this matters
- Muqdisho (Mogadishu) and BanaadirMogadishu (Muqdisho) is Somalia's capital and makes up the Banadir region, with about 2.97 million people in 20 districts.
- Hargeysa (Hargeisa) and Woqooyi GalbeedWoqooyi Galbeed is the north-western region that holds Hargeisa (Hargeysa) and the port of Berbera, with about 1 to 1.45 million people.
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