A.M. Best Assigns A `Excellent' Rating to Guardian Life of the Caribbean Limited.

Business Editors/Insurance Writers

OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 21, 2001

A.M. Best Co. has assigned a financial strength rating of A (Excellent) to Guardian Life of the Caribbean Limited, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.

The rating of Guardian Life is based on the company's role as a core operation within the Guardian Holdings Limited (GHL) group. The rating also reflects Guardian Life's consistently profitable operating performance, strong presence in its local markets, conservative reserving practices and favorable capitalization.

Guardian Life's core business lines have been historically profitable because of its favorable mortality experience and excellent persistency. This has driven continued profitability and has enabled Guardian Life to build and maintain a favorable capital position. With over 150 years of history in a number of Caribbean markets, Guardian Life has established a strong presence in the markets where it operates. Utilizing this brand recognition, GHL continues to seek opportunities to develop new geographic markets while seeking prospective acquisitions to expand its distributive capacity and improve its economies of scale within its various operations.

As Guardian Life seeks to grow its life insurance business in increasingly competitive and mature markets, A.M. Best believes that the company will face some challenges. However, these challenges are mitigated by the company's strong career agency sales force and its innovative products. Although the insurance market in Trinidad and Tobago continues to become more competitive through bancassurance activities, Guardian Life is strategically well positioned in bancassurance through its alliance with Royal Bank of Trinidad and Tobago Financial Holdings Limited (RBTT), one of the leading banking and financial services providers in the Caribbean Basin.

In 1999, Guardian Holdings Limited acquired the individual life and pension portfolios of three restructured Jamaican insurance companies through Guardian Life Limited, its Jamaican subsidiary. These portfolios represent a significant share of the market in Jamaica. In 2000, GHL took a controlling interest in N.E.M. (West Indies) Insurance Limited (NEMWIL), a Trinidad-based general insurer that is currently rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best. GHL also increased its equity interest in RBTT from 10% to 20%. These transactions diluted the holding company's capitalization, increasing the debt to equity ratio to 34%. Capitalization at Guardian Life of the Caribbean Limited is favorable, and possible future debt servicing requirements which could be imposed on the company by its parent will be mitigated by the ongoing capital reorganization of Guardian Holdings Limited.

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.