AM Best Assigns Issuer Credit Rating to Fontana Holdings L.P.; Affirms Credit Ratings of Member Companies

Business Wire

OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
AM Best has assigned a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) of “bbb+” (Good) to Fontana Holdings L.P. The outlook assigned to this Credit Rating (rating) is stable. Concurrently, AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs of “a+” (Excellent) of Fontana Reinsurance U.S. Ltd. and Fontana Reinsurance Ltd., which are subsidiaries of Fontana Holdings L.P. The outlook of these ratings is stable. All companies are domiciled in Bermuda and collectively referred to as Fontana.

The ratings reflect Fontana’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and very strong enterprise risk management (ERM).

Fontana Holdings L.P. is a joint venture between RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. (RenaissanceRe) [NYSE:RNR] and various third-party capital partners. Both Fontana Reinsurance Ltd. and Fontana Reinsurance U.S. Ltd. are ultimately owned by Fontana Holdings L.P., and each company’s rating considers its strategic importance to Fontana. Fontana is critical to RenaissanceRe’s diversification, being the first joint venture focused on casualty and specialty risk. Fontana is managed solely by Renaissance Underwriting Managers, Ltd. (RUM) and is consolidated into RenaissanceRe’s financial statements.

Fontana started operations in April 2022 with USD 475 million in committed capital and has assumed a whole account quota share of RenaissanceRe’s casualty and specialty book of business. Fontana’s capital has been supported by its parent, which has raised capital successfully over the past years to support the growth of Fontana Reinsurance Ltd. and Fontana Reinsurance U.S. Ltd. The ratings of the Fontana entities continue to reflect the strength and depth of RenaissanceRe’s management team and its leadership in ERM, as well as the benefits that should accrue to Fontana as a result of RenaissanceRe—through RUM—managing underwriting, pricing, risk selection, reserves, investments, claims, etc.

AM Best notes that Fontana’s operating performance and overall balance sheet strength have been maintained at levels consistent with expectations over its relatively short operating history. As the companies gain scale, AM Best expects that Fontana will generate underwriting profits and earnings to support the adequate operating performance, and that risk-adjusted capitalization will be maintained at levels to support the strong balance sheet assessment, broadly consistent with RenaissanceRe’s long-term risk appetite for this entity.

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best's Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Performance Assessments, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s Ratings & Assessments.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.