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Baht/$ 33.87/91 (Bid/Ask)
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GOLD |
13,550
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CHAROEN KITTIKANYA
Two insurers under the umbrella of the embattled American International Group (AIG) insist their financial standing is unaffected by the credit crunch now haunting their New York-based parent.
"I want to assert that the financial problems of the parent company were never about the insurance subsidiaries [New Hampshire Insurance and AIG General Insurance]," said Steven Barnett, managing director and CEO of New Hampshire Insurance and honorary president of AIG General Insurance.
"We manage our business by focusing on earning profit from our underwriting operation, not from the ensuing investment. In 2007, our share of the total general insurance industry's profit was 28%. I think this proves we are a financially healthy company."
New Hampshire generally covers corporate clients in Bangkok, while AIA General Insurance focuses on consumer and individual products upcountry. The group is preparing to merge the two operations by the end of next year.
Mr Barnett said at the end of 2007, the combined capital reserve of the two companies was 1.68 billion baht or 11 times the minimum legal requirement.
"Our local company's credit rating remains strong, at A+ (Standard & Poor's)," he said. Last year the company posted $21 million net profit, a rise from $6.5 million in 2006. The figure is expected to grow more slowly to $17.5 million at the end of 2008 due to the poor economy.
For the first seven months of this year, the two companies reported direct premiums of 2.8 billion baht, up 2.5% over the same period last year.
Last year, they had direct premiums of 3.01 billion baht - 659.8 million from AIG General Insurance and 2.356 billion baht from Hampshire Insurance.
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