Multinational Insurance Company’s Hato Rey headquarters. (Credit: © Mauricio Pascual)
Multinational Life Insurance Company announced Monday that A.M. Best, the international rating firm for the insurance industry, has affirmed the insurer’s B++ rating and revised the company’s “Long Term Issuer” credit rating from stable to positive.
“A.M. Best’s revised outlook is positive news as it implies that if the company keeps the current operational and financial trend, it could get an increased rating in the coming years,” said Carlos Iguina-Oharriz, president of Multinational Life Insurance Company.
“It is notable that the last four years have not been exempt from challenges for the company and for Puerto Rico, which is facing a severe economic downturn. However, the measures previously taken, such as strengthening our human capital, reducing our costs significantly, investing in technological efficiency and an operational plan aimed at highlighting our strengths in the insurance industry have resulted not only in the stability of the company but also in new business opportunities for our producers and agents,” he said.
When Multinational Insurance Group acquired it in November 2011, the company had a poor rating (C++) with a negative outlook. Eight months after starting operations in Puerto Rico and implementing a strict operational and business plan, the insurance company achieved a rating of B+ and the outlook was changed to positive. In 2014, A.M. Best raised the company’s rating to B++.
According to A.M. Best, the company showed a strong operating performance in 2016. As evidence of the success of the ongoing restructuring plan, the company reported a strong improvement in income in 2015, a trend that continued in 2016. It also notes that the company has made major changes in its business mix, among these, it has emphasized investing in more profitable business lines where there are growth opportunities, while it has reduced or eliminated less attractive and less demanding products.
Currently, Multinational Life is working to expand into other jurisdictions outside of Puerto Rico, aiming to increase its offer with different types of insurance policies.
“We’re also investing money in technology to provide an improved customer service experience and better service to our policyholders. We also want to dote our insurance producers with better tools to improve their sales numbers and performance,” said Iguina-Oharriz.
As part of the rating process, A.M. Best evaluated both financial and non-financial risks of the company. This analysis includes a review of the parent company and material subsidiaries, affiliates or associated companies.
Multinational Life Insurance Company has a portfolio of life and disability insurance, which focuses on cancer policies, disability and accident. The company belongs to Multinational Insurance Group, a leader in the insurance area in several Latin American countries and with vast experience in the industry.
Multinational has offices in Hato Rey, Mayagüez, Ponce and Arecibo and employs 127 people. The company also has 43 general agencies and 1,174 insurance producers throughout Puerto Rico. During this year it has signed nearly $40 million in premiums and has assets of about $114 million.