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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
HONG KONG - MARCH 20, 2015 10:05 AM (EDT)
A.M. Best has affirmed the financial strength rating of A (Excellent) and the issuer credit rating of "a+" of Fubon Insurance Co., Ltd. (Fubon Insurance) (Taiwan). The outlook for both ratings remains stable.
The ratings reflect Fubon Insurance's well-established market-leading position, strong risk-adjusted capitalization and consistently profitable operating results.
Fubon Insurance has maintained a solid leading position in Taiwan's non-life insurance market over the past three decades. As the non-life insurance arm of Fubon Financial Holding Co., Ltd. (Fubon Financial), one of the largest financial holding companies in Taiwan encompassing banking, life and non-life insurance, and securities business, Fubon Insurance has benefited from the group's strong brand name and extensive distribution network.
Fubon Insurance has consistently recorded favorable underwriting and investment performance, supporting the organic growth of its capital and surplus. The company has continued to maintain a strong risk-adjusted capitalization level, as measured by Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), supported by its effective risk management practice.
An offsetting rating factor is the potential volatility in the company's earnings and capitalization level arising from its relatively large exposure to equity and property investments.
Future positive rating actions could occur if Fubon Insurance can further strengthen its capitalization on an absolute and risk-adjusted basis through a profitable insurance operation and investment activities. Conversely, negative rating actions could occur if there is a material decline in the company's risk-adjusted capitalization, resulting from a major catastrophe event, an investment market shock or a substantial upstream transfer of capital to parent company.
The methodology used in determining these interactive ratings is Best's Credit Rating Methodology, which provides a comprehensive explanation of A.M. 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:
Ratings are communicated to rated entities prior to publication, and unless stated otherwise, the ratings were not amended subsequent to that communication.
This press release relates to rating(s) that have been published on A.M. Best's website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please visit A.M. Best's Ratings & Criteria Center.
A.M. Best Company is the world's oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source.