AM Best Upgrades Crum & Forster; Aspen Ratings on Review Post-Sompo Deal
AM Best upgraded the financial strength ratings of Crum & Forster Insurance Group (C&F) from “A” (excellent) to “A+” (superior), reflecting enhanced business profile due to substantial organic growth and diversification. The rating agency also highlighted C&F's solid underwriting performance and very strong balance sheet strength, supported by Fairfax Financial Holdings. In 2024, C&F wrote $5.7 billion in gross premiums with a combined ratio of 95.0 IFRS 4; 2025 H1 results show a 6% premium increase with an improved combined ratio of 86.9. Concurrently, AM Best affirmed ratings for Monitor Life Insurance Company of New York, linked to its strategic role within C&F's structure.
Moody's placed Aspen Insurance's A3 financial strength ratings and Baa2 senior debt ratings on review for upgrade following Sompo International's $3.5 billion acquisition agreement. This review reflects expected credit profile improvements from integration into Sompo's global operations. Aspen's diverse specialty insurance and reinsurance portfolio, plus its Lloyd's market presence and alternative capital platform (~$2.2 billion AUM), contribute to Moody's positive outlook. Aspen wrote $4.6 billion in premiums in 2024, and the combined Sompo-Aspen entity would rank among the top 10 global reinsurers by premium volume.
AM Best and Moody’s note potential financial and operational benefits for Aspen stemming from its inclusion in a larger organization, while AM Best also placed Sompo Japan Insurance’s ratings under positive review due to increased scale and geographic diversification post-acquisition. S&P Global Ratings reported that Sompo can absorb the acquisition's financial impact while maintaining very strong capitalization and noted the group's capacity for further strategic investments. S&P placed Aspen’s core subsidiaries on CreditWatch Positive, signaling a possible upgrade linked to integration synergies and anticipated cost and capital savings of $200 million by 2030.
Overall, rating agencies’ scrutiny highlights how scale, diversification, underwriting performance, and integration plans drive insurer financial strength evaluations. The acquisition positions Sompo to enhance its global specialty insurance footprint and increase competitiveness in the property/casualty and reinsurance markets. Monitoring integration and synergy realization will be critical to assessing future rating actions. The upgrades and reviews serve as benchmarks for industry assessment of risk, capital adequacy, and strategic growth in specialty insurance sectors.