Ratings agency AM Best has assigned an indicative financial strength rating of A-minus (Excellent) to global reinsurer Danish Re Bermuda.
Danish Re Bermuda is part of the Danish Re group, which underwrites at Lloyd's as an Integrated Lloyd's Vehicle and through its Bermudan operations.
The agency said: "The rating reflects the company's carefully managed growth since its formation in November 1999 in anticipation of an upturn in the reinsurance market, excellent prospective capitalisation and strong financial performance and business profile."
It added that the rating was subject to the full completion of a $200m (£137.4m) private equity placement offer. The offer is expected by the end of January 2002.
Danish Re's investor, Trident II, a $1.4bn (£961.9m) private equity fund managed by MMC Capital, will subscribe to the private offering.
The offer will take Danish Re Bermuda's capital base to approximately $250m (£171.8m). AM Best said this would increase the underwriting capacity of the group's non-Lloyd's operations, which already benefit from Bermuda's beneficial tax and regulatory regime.
Meanwhile, the ratings agency has also assigned an initial A-minus (Excellent) Best's Syndicate Rating to Syndicate 1400, which operates in the Lloyd's insurance market.
A Best's Syndicate Rating reflects a syndicate's specific financial strength characteristics and the financial strength characteristics of the Lloyd's market.
AM Best said Syndicate 1400's rating reflected the strong overall capital structure of the Lloyd's market, the syndicate's high quality capital provider, its strong business profile and its tight underwriting controls.
It added that the the main offsetting factors were the historic, but improving, modest operating performance and the syndicate's lack of an extensive track record.
