A.M. Best Affirms ING Comercial America Rating; Removes From Under Review.

Business Editors

OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 9, 2002

A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the A (Excellent) rating of ING Comercial America Seguros and its wholly owned surety subsidiary ING Comercial America Fianzas--formerly Seguros Comercial America S.A. and Fianzas Comercial America respectively, Mexico.

In addition, the 'under review' status of the rating has been removed. The rating was placed under review following the announcement in June 2001 by the ING Group that it would exercise an early option to acquire the controlling interest of Seguros Comercial America (SCA), raising its total stake to 87%. Subsequently, ING bought the remaining 13% that was publicly traded, making SCA a fully owned subsidiary of ING Group.

The Amsterdam-based ING Group, the ultimate parent of ING Comercial America Seguros and ING Comercial America Fianzas, is one of the largest integrated financial services organizations in the world. ING re-branded its retail operations in Mexico under the name ING Comercial America. The organization's new name combined the brand equity of ING and SCA to form a united ING brand. This rebranding also included ING's AFORE Bital, a fast growing local pension fund. The new company has access to ING products, helping it compete with multinational companies entering the local market. The alliance offers many cross-marketing opportunities by creating a one-stop bankassurance-shopping platform.

ING Comercial America Seguros is essential to the ING Group's ongoing success and viability in Latin America, and is an integral part of its strategy. Furthermore, it has the explicit support of its parent and is well positioned to help the company compete in the local market. The bankassurance business performance should benefit from the joint venture with the Bital Bank, one of the largest Mexican banks in terms of number of branches. The new branding offers strong synergies, considering that, as local pension funds mature, customers are likely to buy annuities with the future proceeds.

ING Comercial America (ING-CA) is the leading insurance company in Latin America on the basis of gross premiums written--US $2.1 billion. About 60% of ING-CA's book is comprised of property & casualty writings, represented mostly by short to moderate tail risks. The remaining 40% is comprised of Health (12%) and Life (28%) individual and group annuities.

Although the recent operating performance has been unrewarding as a whole, A.M. Best expects the company's earnings to improve, reflecting an increased new business volume combined with a diligent underwriting process and strong asset liability management capabilities. A.M. Best believes ING-CA's business plan projects reasonable volume and capital levels to support its insurance and surety operations over the short- to medium-term.

It should be noted that the rating has also been affirmed because of the recent US $287 million increase of capital accomplished in October 2002. The rating level will be contingent upon execution of the company's strategic initiatives. A.M. Best will monitor the company's restoration of historical profitability levels.

Offsetting these strengths is the uncertainty of the local market's growth potential, as well as its volatility. While the Mexican economy has recently shown an improvement, there are still concerns of a downturn on the current positive indicators. Also there are added challenges for ING Comercial America to increase and sustain its market share, especially in new lines and with the increased presence of foreign insurers in the market.

A.M. Best Co., established in 1899, is the world's oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit A.M. Best's Web site at www.ambest.com.