AM Best has assigned a Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” (Excellent) to Berliner Re Reinsurance Company Inc. (Berliner) (Barbados). The outlook assigned to these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.

The ratings reflect Berliner’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strongest, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

The company is Barbados-domiciled and began commercial operations in 2022, underwriting surety for renewable energy and infrastructure developments in Spain seeking further geographic diversification in Latin American markets.

The ratings of Berliner also reflect its strongest level of risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), adequate reinsurance program and conservative investment strategy aimed at providing liquidity and maintaining appropriate asset-liability management. Partially offsetting these positive rating factors are Berliner’s business profile that is bounded by its current concentration in a single business line and distribution channel, as well as the highly competitive landscape in its target geographic markets’ surety bond segment amid a challenging economic environment.

Berliner’s risk-adjusted capitalization stands at the strongest level underpinned by a robust capital base, and low underwriting leverage in conjunction with its conservative investment allocation. In AM Best’s view, the company’s operating performance is pressured by its high administrative expense structure, accordingly due to its startup nature; nevertheless, a continuously expanding top line in conjunction with well-contained claims and consistent inflow of investment income are expected to enhance bottom line results within the short term. Berliner constantly reviews its underwriting guidelines to improve the performance of its businesses. Additionally, reinsurance commissions stemming from its quota share agreement with counterparties with a good level of security, will contribute gradually to offset its high operating expense structure. Berliner posted a net income of USD 2.3 million within its first year of operation, reflecting a 2.3% return-on-equity ratio in 2022.

Negative rating actions could occur if underwriting results fall short of AM Best’s expectations and deteriorate to levels no longer supportive of an adequate operating performance assessment. Positive rating actions, while unlikely within the midterm, could occur if the company is able to achieve geographic expansion successfully while maintaining premiums sufficiency.

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM 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 see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best’s Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Performance Assessments, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s Ratings & Assessments.

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