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Insurance Company Regulatory Requirements
6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2015
Insurance Company Regulatory Requirements [Abstract]  
Insurance Company Regulatory Requirements
Insurance Company Regulatory Requirements
 
Contingency Reserves

On July 15, 2013, AGM and its wholly-owned subsidiary AGE (together, the "AGM Group") and AGC, were notified that the New York State Department of Financial Services ("NYDFS") and the Maryland Insurance Administration (“MIA”) do not object to the AGM Group and AGC, respectively, reassuming contingency reserves in the amount of approximately $250 million, in the case of the AGM Group, and $267 million, in the case of AGC, that they had ceded to AG Re and electing to cease ceding future contingency reserves to AG Re. The insurance regulators permitted the AGM Group and AGC to reassume the contingency reserves in increments over three years. As of June 30, 2015, the AGM Group and AGC had reassumed an aggregate of $428 million. One more installment remains to be reassumed in the third quarter of 2015, subject to the prior approval of the NYDFS, in the case of the AGM Group, and the MIA and the NYDFS, in the case of AGC.

With respect to the regular, quarterly contributions to contingency reserves required by the applicable Maryland and New York laws and regulations, such laws and regulations permit the discontinuation of such quarterly contributions to a company’s contingency reserves when such company’s aggregate contingency reserves for a particular line of business (i.e., municipal or non-municipal) exceed the sum of the company’s outstanding principal for each specified category of obligations within the particular line of business multiplied by the specified contingency reserve factor for each such category.  In accordance with such laws and regulations, and with the approval of the MIA and the NYDFS, respectively, AGC ceased making quarterly contributions to its contingency reserves for both municipal and non-municipal business and AGM ceased making quarterly contributions to its contingency reserves for non-municipal business, in each case beginning in the fourth quarter of 2014. Such cessations are expected to continue for as long as AGC and AGM satisfy the foregoing condition for their applicable line(s) of business.

Dividend Restrictions and Capital Requirements

Under New York insurance law, AGM may only pay dividends out of "earned surplus", which is the portion of a company's surplus that represents the net earnings, gains or profits (after deduction of all losses) that have not been distributed to shareholders as dividends or transferred to stated capital or capital surplus, or applied to other purposes permitted by law, but does not include unrealized appreciation of assets. AGM may pay dividends without the prior approval of the New York Superintendent of Financial Services ("New York Superintendent") that, together with all dividends declared or distributed by it during the preceding 12 months, does not exceed the lesser of 10% of its policyholders' surplus (as of the last annual or quarterly statement filed with the New York Superintendent) or 100% of its adjusted net investment income during that period. The maximum amount available during 2015 for AGM to distribute as dividends without regulatory approval is estimated to be approximately $218 million, of which approximately $57 million is estimated to be available for distribution in the third quarter of 2015.

Under Maryland's insurance law, AGC may, with prior notice to the Maryland Insurance Commissioner, pay an ordinary dividend that, together with all dividends paid in the prior 12 months, does not exceed 10% of its policyholders' surplus (as of the prior December 31) or 100% of its adjusted net investment income during that period. The maximum amount available during 2015 for AGC to distribute as ordinary dividends will be approximately $90 million, of which approximately $16 million is available for distribution in the third quarter of 2015.

MAC is a New York domiciled insurance company subject to the same dividend limitations described above for AGM. The Company does not currently anticipate that MAC will distribute any dividends.

Any distribution (including repurchase of shares) of any share capital, contributed surplus or other statutory capital) that would reduce AG Re's total statutory capital by 15% or more of its total statutory capital as set out in its previous year's financial statements requires the prior approval of the Bermuda Monetary Authority ("Authority"). Separately, dividends are paid out of an insurer's statutory surplus and cannot exceed that surplus. Further, annual dividends cannot exceed 25% of total statutory capital and surplus as set out in its previous year's financial statements, which is $279 million, without AG Re certifying to the Authority that it will continue to meet required margins. Based on the foregoing limitations, in 2015 AG Re has the capacity to (i) make capital distributions in an aggregate amount up to $127 million without the prior approval of the Authority and (ii) declare and pay dividends in an aggregate amount up to the limit of its outstanding statutory surplus, which is $271 million. Such dividend capacity is further limited by the actual amount of AG Re’s unencumbered assets, which amount changes from time to time due in part to collateral posting requirements. As of June 30, 2015, AG Re had unencumbered assets of approximately $566 million.

U.K. company law prohibits each of AGE and AGUK from declaring a dividend to its shareholders unless it has “profits available for distribution.” The determination of whether a company has profits available for distribution is based on its accumulated realized profits less its accumulated realized losses. While the U.K. insurance regulatory laws impose no statutory restrictions on a general insurer's ability to declare a dividend, the Prudential Regulation Authority's capital requirements may in practice act as a restriction on dividends. The Company does not expect AGE or AGUK to distribute any dividends at this time.

Dividends and Surplus Notes
By Insurance Company Subsidiaries

 
Second Quarter
 
Six Months
 
2015

2014
 
2015
 
2014
 
(in millions)
Dividends paid by AGC to AGUS
$
15

 
$
15

 
$
35

 
$
15

Dividends paid by AGM to AGMH
40

 
45

 
106

 
45

Dividends paid by AG Re to AGL
35

 
20

 
85

 
82

Repayment of surplus note by AGM to AGMH

 

 
25

 
25