Rating of the group and its major subsidiaries
In recent months the Talanx Group and its companies again received excellent or very good ratings from the international rating agencies Standard & Poor’s (S&P) and A.M. Best. It is important to distinguish between the "Financial Strength Rating", which primarily assesses our company’s ability to meet obligations to customers – i.e. our policyholders –, and the "Issuer Credit Rating" or "Counterparty Credit Rating", which provides investors with information from an independent source about a company’s financial strength.
All information provided on ratings in this section is valid as at 30 May 2008.
Financial Strength Ratings of the Talanx Group and its subgroups
| Standard & Poor’s | A.M. Best | ||
| Note Outlook | Note Outlook | ||
Talanx Group |
|
| A | Stable |
Talanx Primary Group1) | A+ | Stable |
|
|
Hannover Re subgroup2) | AA– | Stable | A | Stable |
1) This rating applies to the subgroup of primary insurers as a whole as well as its major core companies (Property/Casualty Primary Insurance and Life Primary Insurance segments of the Talanx Group). 2) This rating applies to Hannover Re and its major core companies. The Hannover Re subgroup corresponds to the Non-Life Reinsurance and Life/Health Reinsurance segments of the Talanx Group. | ||||
On the basis of these ratings, the rating agencies categorize the financial stability of the Talanx Group as "excellent" or "strong". S&P awarded the Reinsurance segment of the Talanx Group the second-highest possible rating ("Very Strong"), while the Primary Group received the third-best mark ("Strong"). S&P attributed the downgrade of the Primary Group segment in 2006 to risks that could arise out of implementation of the Gerling integration. The rating agency highlights the outstanding competitive position and strong earnings power of the Talanx Group as particularly impressive strengths. The rating awarded by A.M. Best corresponds to its second-highest grade ("excellent") with respect to both the Talanx Group and the Hannover Re Group. A.M. Best has already reaffirmed the Financial Strength Rating of the Hannover Re Group for 2008.