Rating Actions

When a rating agency assigns a public rating to a financial obligation guaranteed by one of AGL’s insurance company subsidiaries, it generally awards that obligation the same rating it has assigned to the financial strength of the AGL subsidiary that provides the guaranty. Investors in products insured by AGL’s insurance company subsidiaries frequently rely on ratings published by the rating agencies because such ratings influence the trading value of securities and form the basis for many institutions’ investment guidelines as well as individuals’ bond purchase decisions. Therefore, the Company manages its business with the goal of achieving strong financial strength ratings. However, the methodologies and models used by rating agencies differ, presenting conflicting goals that may make it inefficient or impractical to reach the highest rating level. The methodologies and models are not fully transparent, contain subjective elements and data (such as assumptions about future market demand for the Company’s products) and may change. Ratings are subject to continuous review and revision or withdrawal at any time. If the financial strength ratings of one (or more) of the Company’s insurance subsidiaries were reduced below current levels, the Company expects it could have adverse effects on the impacted subsidiary's future business opportunities as well as the premiums the impacted subsidiary could charge for its insurance policies.

The Company periodically assesses the value of each rating assigned to each of its companies, and as a result of such assessment may request that a rating agency add or drop a rating from certain of its companies. For example, the Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) ratings were first assigned to MAC in 2013, to AGM in 2014, and to AGC in 2016, while the A.M. Best Company, Inc. (Best) rating was first assigned to Assured Guaranty Re Overseas Ltd. (AGRO) in 2015, and a Moody's Investors Service, Inc. (Moody's) rating was never requested for MAC and was dropped from AG Re and AGRO in 2015. On January 13, 2017, AGC announced that it had requested that Moody's withdraw its financial strength rating of AGC. Moody's declined that initial request, but AGC is renewing its request.

In the last several years, S&P Global Ratings, a division of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC (S&P) and Moody's have changed, multiple times, their financial strength ratings of AGL's insurance subsidiaries, or changed the outlook on such ratings. More recently, KBRA and Best have assigned financial strength ratings to some of AGL's insurance subsidiaries. The rating agencies' most recent actions related to AGL's insurance subsidiaries are:


•	On September 20, 2016, KBRA assigned a financial strength rating of AA (stable outlook) to AGC. On December 14, 2016 and July 8, 2016, KBRA affirmed the AA+ (stable outlook) financial strength ratings of AGM and MAC, respectively.

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On August 8, 2016, Moody's affirmed the A2 (stable outlook) on AGM and AGE and the A3 insurance financial strength rating on AGC and AGC's subsidiary Assured Guaranty (UK) Ltd. (AGUK), raising the outlook to stable from negative. As noted above, AGC is requesting that Moody's withdraw its rating of AGC and AGUK. On January 13, 2017, Moody's upgraded AGLN to Baa2 from Ba2, reflecting its acquisition by AGC. Effective April 8, 2015, at the Company's request, Moody’s withdrew the financial strength ratings it had assigned to AG Re and AGRO.


•	On July 27, 2016, S&P affirmed the AA (stable) financial strength ratings of AGL's insurance subsidiaries other than AGLN. On January 12, 2017, S&P placed the BB rating of AGLN on credit watch positive in anticipation of the potential combination of AGLN with the Company's other European subsidiaries.


•	On May 27, 2016, Best affirmed the A+ (stable) financial strength rating, which is their second highest rating, of AGRO.

There can be no assurance that any of the rating agencies will not take negative action on their financial strength ratings of AGL's insurance subsidiaries in the future.

For a discussion of the effects of rating actions on the Company, see the following:


•	Note 6, Contracts Accounted for as Insurance


•	Note 13, Reinsurance and Other Monoline Exposures