A.M. Best Co. viewed PartnerRe Ltd.’s (PRE) decision to acquire a majority stake in Paris Re on July 5, 2009 as positive for the company.

The all-stock transaction, valued at about approximately $2 billion, will exchange 0.30 of PartnerRe shares for each Paris Re common share outstanding. The deal is expected to be completed in a number of steps. We think this will help PartnerRe’s visibility in a wider market and strengthen its operation to weather the ongoing market volatility.

After reviewing the offer, A.M. Best kept unchanged PartnerRe Group’s and its members’ financial strength rating and issuer credit ratings (ICR) at “A+" and “aa-", respectively. The ICR and debt ratings of the parent company (PartnerRe Ltd) remained unchanged as well. The outlook for all ratings is stable.

The rating agency exudes optimism about the transaction and believes that PartnerRe will gain operating scale through a diversified geography

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