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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEXICO CITY - SEPTEMBER 04, 2025 01:14 PM (EDT)
AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” (Excellent) of Seguros Suramericana S.A. (Sura) (Panama). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.
The ratings reflect Sura’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strongest, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
Sura’s balance sheet strength is supported by a well-structured reinsurance program and synergies provided by Grupo de Inversiones Suramericana S.A. (Grupo Sura), a leading Colombia-based financial services company in Latin America’s insurance, asset management and banking industries. Offsetting these positive rating factors are Panama’s highly competitive landscape, and the decline in Sura’s profitability in the most recent periods.
As of December 2024, Sura was the fourth-largest insurer in Panama, with a market share of 8.8%; 72% of its business portfolio is composed of non-life products, with life products making up the remaining 28%. Sura’s main property/casualty business segment is auto, which represents 39% of its gross written premium.
In 2018, Grupo Sura’s initiative was to optimize shareholder value through the merger of intermediate insurance holding companies, Suramericana S.A. and Inversura Panamá Internacional S.A., drove a stock split transaction for their subsidiary, Aseguradora Suiza Salvadoreña, S.A. This further enhanced Sura’s risk-adjusted capitalization, which was already at the strongest level, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR).
Sura’s capital base continues to be driven by its value-based management model, while meeting the group’s post-merger return on investment goals. AM Best expects Sura to follow consistent capital management guidelines supportive of its ratings. Additionally, the company’s balance sheet strength is supported by a comprehensive reinsurance program, set with reinsurers that have excellent security, as well as the implementation of an internal economic capital model.
During 2024, most of Sura’s largest business lines stayed in line in terms of volume, presenting an overall 3.9% growth during the period. Despite efforts to maintain all lines of business under premium sufficiency, the results reflect an opportunity for underwriting improvements and put pressure on the company’s profitability. As of June 2025, Sura’s operating performance metrics remained consistent with past trends, presenting a net loss of USD 2.9 million.
Negative rating actions could occur if the company's risk-adjusted capitalization deteriorates to a level no longer supportive of the current ratings as a result of capital base erosion. Positive rating actions could take place as a result of the successful evolution of the company's business strategy, while presenting consistently strong operating performance metrics, with improving bottom-line results and profitability indicators to levels more in line with highly rated peers.
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