AM Best


A.M. Best Announces ESMA Registration for New Amsterdam Office


CONTACTS:

Edem Kuenyehia
Director, Market Development &
Communications
+44 20 7397 0280
edem.kuenyehia@ambest.com

Nick Charteris-Black
Managing Director,
Market Development - EMEA
+44 20 7397 0273
nick.charteris-black@ambest.com
Yvette Essen
Director, Research, Communications &
Media – Europe, Middle East & Africa
+44 20 7397 0322
yvette.essen@ambest.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LONDON - DECEMBER 03, 2018 10:41 AM (EST)
A.M. Best has announced that it has been registered as a credit rating agency (CRA) by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) to provide ratings through its new subsidiary, A.M. Best (EU) Rating Services B.V., based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

A.M. Best’s London-based subsidiary, A.M. Best Europe — Rating Services Limited, is at present registered with ESMA in Paris, which allows it to provide rating services throughout the European Union (EU) on a cross-border basis. The new registration of its office in Amsterdam, with effect from 3 December 2018, will enable A.M. Best to continue to provide ratings to be used for regulatory purposes post-Brexit across the EU member nations.

Roger Sellek, chief executive of A.M. Best’s Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific operations, said: “We welcome this news that our application has been successful. ESMA’s registration of A.M. Best’s Amsterdam office enables us to prepare for any kind of Brexit outcome, to ensure continuity of our rating services for our clients.”

A.M. Best selected Amsterdam for its new European office given it is a well-established financial centre closely matching A.M. Best’s strategic priorities. Amsterdam also has an excellent talent pool and good transport links to all the major European locations where A.M. Best’s clients are based. A.M. Best’s office at the heart of the (re)insurance community in the City of London will continue to act as its hub for the EMEA region and plans to be registered with the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) which is assuming responsibility for the supervision of U.K.-based credit rating agencies post-Brexit.

Nick Charteris-Black, managing director, market development for A.M. Best Europe, Middle East and Africa, said: “The Amsterdam office reinforces A.M. Best’s ambitious growth agenda for continental Europe and demonstrates our commitment to providing continuity of rating services throughout the EU post-Brexit whilst developing our coverage in other international markets across the broader EMEA region from London.’’

A.M. Best’s ongoing plans may be adapted in light of future developments, including, for example, the outcome of transitional arrangements that may be agreed between the United Kingdom and the EU.

A.M. Best is a global rating agency and information provider with a unique focus on the insurance industry.