A.M. Best Places Credit Ratings of KB Insurance Co., Ltd. Under Review With Positive Implications

HONG KONG–(BUSINESS WIRE)– A.M. Best has placed under review with positive implications the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” of KB Insurance Co., Ltd. (KB Insurance) (South Korea).

The Credit Rating (rating) action follows KB Financial Group Inc.’s (KB Group) announcement on April 17, 2017, that it will acquire 60.19% of the outstanding shares of KB Insurance. The KB Group currently owns 39.81% of KB Insurance’s shares. The under review with positive implications status reflects the potential financial and operational benefits that KB Insurance could derive from being a member of the larger and more diverse KB Group.

A.M. Best expects to resolve the under review with positive implications status of the ratings following the completion of the discussions with management regarding the company’s business plans and the strategic role that KB Insurance will play in KB Group’s structure. Any actual or anticipated changes to KB Insurance’s financial profile will be reviewed to assess the impact on the company’s ratings. Additionally, A.M. Best will factor its view of KB Group’s credit profile into the final rating determination.

Ratings are communicated to rated entities prior to publication. Unless stated otherwise, the ratings were not amended subsequent to that communication.

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on A.M. 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 A.M. Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Understanding Best’s Credit Ratings.

A.M. Best is the world’s oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright © 2017 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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A.M. Best

Sergio Agena, +852-2827-3407

Associate Financial Analyst

sergio.agena@ambest.com

or

Seewon Oh, +852-2827-3404

Associate Director, Analytics

seewon.oh@ambest.com

or

Christopher Sharkey, +1-908-439-2200, ext. 5159

Manager, Public Relations

christopher.sharkey@ambest.com

or

Jim Peavy, +1-908-439-2200, ext. 5644

Director, Public Relations

james.peavy@ambest.com

Source: A.M. Best