AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Victoria Insurance Company JSC

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B+ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “bbb-” (Good) of Victoria Insurance Company JSC (Victoria) (Kazakhstan). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.

The ratings reflect Victoria’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its strong operating performance, limited business profile and weak enterprise risk management.

Victoria’s balance sheet strength is underpinned by risk-adjusted capitalisation at the strongest level, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), and its relatively conservative investment portfolio by asset class, providing the company with good levels of liquidity. The company's large capital base provides a buffer to withstand potential volatility emanating from its underwriting and investment activities as well as its exposure to credit risk. An offsetting factor to the balance sheet strength assessment is Victoria’s limited reinsurance protection against potential natural catastrophe losses in Kazakhstan.

Victoria has a track record of strong underwriting profitability, as demonstrated by net-net combined ratios of 79.0% in 2024 and 66.8% in 2023 (as calculated by AM Best). However, technical results remain subject to volatility due to a frequently changing underwriting strategy and a potential for low frequency, high severity claims in the company’s property and liability books of business. In 2024, Victoria reported overall net profit of KZT 12.6 billion (approximately USD 24.0 million), compared with KZT 7.2 billion (approximately USD 15.7 million) in the previous year, equating to a return-on-equity ratio of 16.5% (2023: 9.8%) (as calculated by AM Best). The company’s earnings are supplemented by solid investment returns, reflecting the high-interest rate environment in Kazakhstan and globally. Based on unaudited preliminary results, the company’s profitability is expected to be on a similar level in 2025.

Victoria has a limited business profile as a small, non-life insurer operating solely in Kazakhstan’s fragmented and competitive insurance market. The company is ranked 14th among the country’s 15 non-life insurers, based on 2025 gross written premium (GWP), with a market share of 1.0%. Victoria’s GWP substantially decreased in 2025, to KZT 8.7 billion (approximately USD 16.6 million), driven by the termination of a material motor and property co-insurance arrangement that was in place until May 2024.

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 Performance Assessments, 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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