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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEXICO CITY - APRIL 25, 2024 02:31 PM (EDT)
AM Best has maintained the under review with negative implications status for the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) of “bbb” (Good) of RF&G Insurance Company Limited (RF&G) (Belize).
The Credit Ratings (ratings) of RF&G were initially placed under review with negative implications on Sep. 22, 2023, following the company’s 100% acquisition of the shares of M&C General Insurance Company Limited from Minvielle & Chastanet Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Goddard Enterprises Limited. With this acquisition, RF&G aims to expand its reach in the Caribbean market and enhance its overall business. While the funding for this transaction has been provided and analyzed without any significant effect on RF&G, the negative implications status reflects AM Best’s uncertainty about the consolidated balance sheet strength post-transaction, which remains unavailable for further analysis.
AM Best will continue to monitor the effects of this transaction as those evolve and provide updates as conditions warrant. The ratings will remain under review with negative implications until the financial, structural and business strategies have been analyzed.
RF&G is the leading property/casualty insurer in Belize, with over 50% of the market share. The company is wholly owned by its holding company, G.A. Roe & Sons Limited, which operates as a finance, management and investment company.
The methodology used in determining these ratings is Best’s Credit Rating Methodology (Version Jan. 18, 2024), which provides a comprehensive explanation of AM Best’s rating process and contains the different rating criteria employed in the rating process. Best’s Credit Rating Methodology can be found at www.ambest.com/ratings/methodology.
Key insurance criteria reports utilized:
· Evaluating Country Risk (Version May 4, 2023)
· Understanding Global BCAR (Version March 7, 2024)
· Catastrophe Analysis in AM Best Ratings (Version Feb. 8, 2024)
· Available Capital and Insurance Holding Company Analysis (Version Jan. 18, 2024)
· Scoring and Assessing Innovation (Version Feb. 27, 2023)
View a general description of the policies and procedures used to determine credit ratings. For information on the meaning of ratings, structure, voting and the committee process for determining the ratings and monitoring activities, relevant sources of information and the frequency for updating ratings, please refer to Guide to Best’s Credit Ratings.
· Previous Rating Date: Sept. 22, 2023.
· Initial Rating Date: Nov. 30, 2018.
· Date Range of Financial Data Used: Dec. 31, 2017-Dec. 31, 2023
Ratings are communicated to rated entities prior to publication. Unless stated otherwise, the ratings were not amended subsequent to that communication.
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AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City.