Rating to Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A and Česká pojišťovna for 2018

Rating agency A.M. Best has upgraded the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long–Term ICR) to “a+” from “a” and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A (Excellent) of Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A. (Generali Italy) and its main rated subsidiaries including Česká pojišťovna. The outlook of the Long-Term ICR has been revised from positive to stable while the outlook of the FSR remains stable.

The ratings reflect Generali’s balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as strong, as well as its strong operating performance, very favorable business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

The upgrade of the Long-Term ICR reflects Generali’s record of consistently strong profitability in challenging market conditions, reflective of the successful execution of the group’s strategic plan, focusing on technical discipline and adapting to a persistent low interest rate environment. Generali’s balance sheet strength is underpinned by risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), at the strongest level, which has benefitted from ongoing solid organic capital generation over recent years.

Rating agency assessment is based on analysis of reported financial performance for at least the past five years, utilizing over 100 key financial tests and supporting data. As part of the rating process, Česká pojišťovna shares with the rating agency data on market conditions, strategy, performance of individual insurance lines of business, products and innovations, risk management details or reinsurance contracts overview.

The rating agency A.M. Best has updated its methodology last year. Impetus for this change was transparency, consistency and movement towards the best market practices.