AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Nacional de Seguros S.A. Compañía de Seguros Generales

AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “bbb” (Good) of Nacional de Seguros S.A. Compañía de Seguros Generales (Nacional de Seguros) (Bogota, Colombia). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.

The ratings reflect Nacional de Seguros’ balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM).

The ratings also reflect the company’s strongest level of risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), and the profitability Nacional de Seguros has achieved during its relatively short track record. Partially offsetting these positive rating factors is the size of the company, which limits business diversification given the inherent concentration risk, and its high dependence on reinsurance.

Nacional de Seguros began operations in 2014 after acquiring Ecoseguros S.A., a company in voluntary liquidation, with fulfillment and liability insurance licenses granted by the Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia (SFC). Nacional de Seguros had less than a 2% market share in Colombia’s property/casualty segment, as of December 2023, and is the third-largest company in the fulfillment insurance sector with a 13.5% market share.

Nacional de Seguros’ risk-adjusted capitalization stands at the strongest level, as measured by BCAR, and is supported by a comprehensive reinsurance program and its consistent historical profitability. Credit risk, driven by reinsurance recoverables, is the main factor that could impact the company’s BCAR assessment.

Business operations are focused exclusively on Colombia; 81% of premiums are generated in Bogota, 14% from Medellin, and 5% from other cities.

Despite reporting fluctuations in gross premiums, the company has maintained a steady retention level, and constant profitability. Underwriting metrics are characterized by contained loss ratios, and negative acquisition cost ratios due to Nacional de Seguros’ high ceding profile. The company’s investment income has exhibited a stable trend in the past few years, moderately supporting Nacional de Seguros’ income generation.

Although unlikely, positive rating actions could result from a successful consolidation of the company's business strategy, supported by prudent growth and underwriting practices. Negative rating actions could occur as a result of ERM framework deficiencies, reflected by inadequate exposure management practices, or if the ERM framework becomes unsupportive of the current assessment by any other means. Negative rating actions also could occur if operating performance metrics deteriorate to the point of no longer being consistent with the adequate assessment.

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.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

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