HONG KONG -- (BUSINESS WIRE) --

A.M. Best Asia Pacific Ltd has been approved as a licensed credit rating agency under the new regulatory regime of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) in Hong Kong. Under the new regime, credit rating agencies (CRAs) and their rating analysts who provide credit rating services in Hong Kong are required to be licensed for Type10 regulated activities and are subject to supervision by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). A.M. Best and its rating analysts have met the licensing requirements and the company's license was issued and became effective on June 1, 2011.

Susanna Lam, managing director of A.M. Best Asia Pacific, said, "A.M. Best has high standards of corporate governance to safeguard the independence and integrity of our ratings. We are proud to be part of the first group of the credit rating agencies in Hong Kong to meet the regulatory standards and look forward to working with the Hong Kong SFC to improve standards in the credit rating sector."

Founded in 1899, A.M. Best Company is the world's oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright © 2011 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

CONTACT:

A.M. Best Co.
Moungmo Lee, +852-2827-3402
General Manager
moungmo.lee@ambest.com
or
Susanna SW Lam, +852-2827-3401
Managing Director
susanna.lam@ambest.com
or
Rachelle Morrow, +(1) 908-439-2200, ext. 5378
Senior Manager, Public Relations
rachelle.morrow@ambest.com
or
Jim Peavy, +(1) 908-439-2200, ext. 5644
Assistant Vice President, Public Relations
james.peavy@ambest.com