AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Members of ReliaStar Life Insurance Group
AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings of "a+" (Excellent) of ReliaStar Life Insurance Company of New York (Woodbury, NY) and ReliaStar Life Insurance Company (Minneapolis, MN), collectively known as ReliaStar Life Insurance Group (ReliaStar). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. Both companies are life insurance subsidiaries of Voya Financial Inc., which is headquartered in New York, NY.
The ratings reflect ReliaStar's balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
Over the past several years, Voya Financial Inc. ceased new individual life insurance and sold its individual life and annuity segments. ReliaStar continues to sell employee benefits insurance products.
The ratings also reflect ReliaStar's very strong risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), and generally favorable operating results from its employee benefits business. Voya Financial Inc. has been executing a strategy of exiting markets that are more capital intensive, or where Voya is less competitive. The recent transactions also lowered Voya Financial Inc.'s overall product risk and has lowered the company's required capital significantly.
ReliaStar's strengths are offset partially by limited direct premium growth and a less-diversified business profile due to exiting markets via the sale of inforce life and annuity blocks.
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 Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best's Ratings & Assessments.
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