Reinsurance Technical Accountant - CA(SA) X 5

Acumen Group; South Africa; On-site; ZAR 500,000 - 700,000; Full time

Job summary

A reinsurance firm in South Africa is seeking a professional to manage reinsurance accounting processes, including validating premium and loss balances, reconciling treaty statements, and ensuring compliance with regulatory filings. The ideal candidate will also produce automated reporting and collaborate with various internal teams to enhance overall operational efficiency. This role demands in-depth knowledge of reinsurance accounting and a proactive approach to problem-solving.

Qualifications

• Expert in managing sub-ledger processes and ensuring compliance with US GAAP.
• Experience with reconciliations and cash monitoring at the treaty level.
• Ability to produce and maintain automated reporting and KPI dashboards.

Responsibilities

• Manage Phinsys sub-ledger processes with accurate inputs and reconciliations.
• Reconcile treaty statements and resolve discrepancies across accounts.
• Support quarterly and annual close processes.
• Act as a subject-matter expert in reinsurance accounting.
• Prepare ceded reinsurance bordereaux and related schedules.
• Manage treaty-level financial transactions and cash monitoring.
• Ensure accurate application of treaty terms.
• Investigate and resolve variances and unreconciled cash.
• Assist with regulatory filings and compliance.
• Produce automated reports and KPI dashboards.
• Enhance technical accounting processes with automation.
• Collaborate with Underwriting, Actuarial, and Claims.

Skills

Reinsurance accounting expertise

Financial reconciliation

Automation initiatives

Data analysis

Job description

• Manage Phinsys sub-ledger processes, ensuring accurate inputs, reconciliation and posting of premiums, losses, acquisition costs, and ceded transactions in accordance with US GAAP.
• Reconcile treaty statements (bordereaux, SOAs, cash calls, claims listings) and resolve discrepancies across general ledger accounts, subsystems and cash-matching tools.
• Support quarterly and annual close processes, including booking premium and loss accruals, unearned premium, DAC amortisation, ceded recoverables, IBNR/ultimate loss entries, and profit commission/sliding scale calculations.
• Serve as a subject-matter expert in reinsurance accounting, reviewing and validating premium, loss, and ceded balances.
• Prepare ceded reinsurance bordereaux and related schedules.

Reinsurance Operations

• Manage treaty-level financial transactions, including cash monitoring, reconciliations, and resolving aged items or discrepancies with reinsurers and brokers.
• Ensure accurate application of treaty terms (quota share, surplus, excess of loss) and proper execution of operational and administrative processes.
• Investigate and resolve variances, past-due balances, and unreconciled cash while maintaining timely follow-up with internal and external stakeholders.
• Support automation initiatives and system enhancements to improve efficiency and accuracy in reinsurance accounting processes.

Regulatory & Compliance

• Assist with BMA regulatory filings, BSCR schedules, and supporting technical balances.
• Ensure compliance with Bermuda solvency rules, internal controls, and reinsurance contract terms.
• Address external and internal audit queries and maintain up-to-date accounting policies and procedures.

Reporting, Analytics & Technology

• Produce and maintain automated underwriting performance reports and KPI dashboards including premium activity, loss development, ceded performance, exception reporting and cash-flow forecasting.
• Enhance technical accounting processes streamlining bordereaux and reconciliation workflows, strengthening data integrity, and leveraging automation agents.

Cross Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Underwriting, Actuarial, Ceded Reinsurance, and Claims on data quality, reserving inputs, contract terms, recoverables, and claims activity.
• Support enhancements to finance, underwriting, and reinsurance systems, including customisations and transformation projects.
• Contribute to future-state initiatives, system upgrades, and automation agents by evaluating new structures and products, supporting system and data enhancements, and partnering with FP&A and ERM on cross functional projects.