AM BEST REVISES PINNACLE LIFE LIMITED’S OUTLOOKS TO POSITIVE

KUALA LUMPUR, April 8 (Bernama) -- Global credit rating agency AM Best has revised the outlooks to positive from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B (Fair) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of ‘bb+’ (Fair) of Pinnacle Life Limited (Pinnacle Life) New Zealand.

These Credit Rating (rating) actions follow the completed acquisition of 100 per cent ownership of Pinnacle Life on March 31, 2022, by Greenstone Holdco Pty Limited (Greenstone), an insurance distributor in Australia and New Zealand.

According to a statement, this concludes a staged acquisition following an agreement signed in April 2020.

The ratings reflect Pinnacle Life’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as adequate, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM). The ratings also factor in a neutral impact from the company’s ultimate ownership by Greenstone.

The positive outlooks reflect an improving trend in Pinnacle Life’s balance sheet fundamentals, including its regulatory solvency position and financial flexibility. Pinnacle Life has experienced some volatility in its regulatory solvency in recent years, mainly due to its new business growth initiatives.

AM Best views the company’s financial flexibility to have strengthened following the change of ownership. AM Best expects Greenstone to provide capital support to Pinnacle Life if required and prospective regulatory solvency to remain robust over the medium term.

These factors, coupled with AM Best’s expectation of controlled growth and robust underwriting performance over the medium term, could lead to positive rating actions.

Pinnacle Life’s balance sheet strength is underpinned by its risk-adjusted capitalisation, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), which AM Best expects to remain at the strongest level over the medium term.

AM Best views Pinnacle Life’s ERM as appropriate given the size and complexity of the company’s current operations.

While AM Best considers Pinnacle Life’s risk management capabilities as appropriate for its key risks, it expects continual development as the company increases its scope of operations over the near term.

More details at www.ambest.com.

-- BERNAMA