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  • ES-A ES-A Introduction

    • ES-A.1 ES-A.1 Purpose

      • Executive Summary

        • ES-A.1.1

          The purpose of this Module is to:

          (a) Provide an overview of the structure of Volume 3 (Insurance);
          (b) Provide a summary of each Module; and
          (c) Outline the transition rules for the implementation of the Volume 3.
          Amended: January 2007

        • ES-A.1.2

          The Central Bank of Bahrain ('CBB'), in its capacity as the regulatory and supervisory authority for all financial institutions in Bahrain, has as its mission:

          (a) To ensure monetary and financial stability in the Kingdom of Bahrain; and
          (b) To regulate, develop and maintain confidence in the financial sector.
          Amended: January 2007

        • ES-A.1.3

          As the single regulator, the CBB ensures the consistent application of regulatory standards in banking, insurance and capital markets, as well as encourages an open and cooperative approach in dealing with financial institutions.

          Amended: January 2007

        • ES-A.1.4

          The supervision of the insurance sector in the Kingdom pays particular regard to the standards set by the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS). The CBB plays an important role in meeting stakeholders' expectations — the principal stakeholders of the CBB are the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the regulated financial institutions, the consumers, the IAIS and several other international organizations.

          Amended: January 2007

        • ES-A.1.5

          To carry out its responsibilities in relation to the insurance sector, the CBB has four supervisory objectives, namely to:

          (a) Promote the stability and soundness in the insurance system;
          (b) Provide an appropriate degree of protection to insurance company policyholders;
          (c) Promote transparency and market discipline; and
          (d) Reduce the likelihood of insurance licensees being used for financial crime (including money laundering activities).
          Amended: January 2007

      • Legal Basis

        • ES-A.1.6

          This Module contains the CBB's (as amended from time to time) Directive relating to transition rules and is issued under the powers available to the CBB under Article 38 of the Central Bank of Bahrain and Financial Institutions Law 2006 ('CBB Law'). The Directive in this Module is applicable to all insurance licensees (including their approved persons).

          Amended: January 2011
          Amended: January 2007

        • ES-A.1.7

          For an explanation of the CBB's rule-making power and different regulatory instruments, see Section UG-1.1.

          Amended: January 2007

    • ES-A.2 ES-A.2 Module History

      • ES-A.2.1

        This Module was first issued in April 2005 by the BMA together with the rest of Volume 3 (Insurance). Any material changes to that have subsequently been made to this Module are annotated with the calendar quarter date in which the change was made; Chapter UG-3 provides further details on Rulebook maintenance and version control.

        Amended: January 2007

      • ES-A.2.2

        When the CBB replaced the BMA in September 2006, the provisions of this Module remained in force. Volume 3 was updated in January 2007 to reflect the switch to the CBB; however, new calendar quarter dates were only issued where the update necessitated changes to actual requirements.

        Adopted: January 2007

      • ES-A.2.3

        A list of recent changes made to this Module is provided below:

        Module Ref. Change Date Description of Changes
        ES-1.1 01/07/05 Module BR: Corrected first quarterly return due for the period ending 31 March 2006.
        ES-1.1 01/10/05 Clarified application of Module FC to insurance managers.
        ES-1.10 01/10/05 Corrected cross-reference referring to examples of suspicious transactions.
        ES-2.4 01/10/05 Added transition period for actuarial requirements for insurance firms whose long term insurance business is restricted to group life policies having a maturity of less than or equal to 1 year.
        ES-2.5 01/10/05 Corrected cross-reference.
        ES-2.6 01/10/05 Updated transition rules for minimum Tier 1 capital.
        ES-1.1 01/01/06 Transition rules for reporting by insurance firms updated.
        ES-2.7 01/01/06 A Section on transition rules for reporting by insurance firms was added.
        ES-1.1.5 01/07/06 Transition rule for Modules RM and PD has been added.
        ES-2.6A 01/07/06 Added transition rules for physical security measures and third party insurance.
        ES-2.8 01/07/06 Transition rules in respect of semi-annual disclosure requirements have been added.
        ES-A.1.6 01/2007 New Rule introduced, categorising this Module as a Directive.
        ES-1.1.9 and ES-2.4.2 01/2007 Clarified the first period for which a report from the Signing Actuary is required.
        ES-1.1.9 and ES-2.6B.1 01/2007 Allowed for a transition period for the external auditor's report required under Subparagraph FC-3.3.1(d).
        ES-1.1.9 10/2007 Minimum Tier 1 capital only applies to Bahraini insurance firms.
        ES-1.2.2 10/2007 Pure reinsurers can undertake both general insurance business and long-term insurance business within the same entity.
        ES-2.4.3 10/2007 Clarified the transition period for the rotation of audit partner.
        ES-2.6.2 10/2007 Minimum Tier 1 capital only applies to Bahraini insurance firms.
        ES-1.1, ES-1.2, ES-1.11, ES-1.14 10/2009 Reference added to appointed representatives as per Resolution (11) of 2009.
        ES-1.2.3 10/2009 Amended list of controlled functions to be consistent with Module AU.
        ES-1.5.4 10/2009 Amended to be consistent with Section AA-4.2.
        ES-2.5.4 10/2009 Introduced transition rule for new requirements for appointed representatives as per Resolution (11) of 2009.
        ES-A.1.6 01/2011 Clarified legal basis
        ES1.1.9, ES-1.4, ES-1.17.3 and ES-2.3 04/2011 Amended to reflect changes to Module HC.
        ES-1.1.9, ES-1.8A and ES-2.6AA2 04/2012 Amendments made to reflect the issuance of Module CL (Client Money).
        ES-2.6AA1 04/2012 Added transition period to have in place customer complaints procedures as outlined in Chapter BC-4.
        ES-2.7.4 and ES-2.7.5 04/2012 Added transition period for filing of IBR and IBRS.
        ES-1.1.9
        ES-1.15         		10/2012 The reference to Module DP was deleted as customer complaints procedures are included in Chapter BC-4.
        ES-1.1.9 04/2014 Updated transition period to repay/write of Qard Hassan granted for solvency purposes.
        ES-1.2.3 04/2014 Updated list of approved persons to be in line with AU-1.2.2.
        ES-1.7.5, ES-1.19.3, ES-2.4 and ES-2.6 04/2014 Updated to reflect the consultation on the enhanced operational and solvency framework for Takaful firms.