Caribbean Information and Credit Rating Services Limited (CariCRIS) has reaffirmed the highest possible rating on the national scale for local currency for Sagicor Group Jamaica (SGJ) in its most recent report, the company has announced.

The rating of jmAAA, “indicates that the level of creditworthiness of SGJ, adjudged in relation to other local currency debt obligators in Jamaica, is the highest,” CariCRIS is reported in a news release from Sagicor.

The company said it was reaffirmed as having overall ‘good creditworthiness’ by the rating agency, having also attained a score of jmAA+ for foreign currency on the national scale.

“On the regional scale, the group received ratings of CariA and CariA- for local and foreign currency, respectively, for the year ending March 31, 2023,” the release stated

Sagicor Life Jamaica (SLJ), a member of the Sagicor Group, also received exceptional ratings from CariCRIS. SLJ was also reaffirmed as having the ‘highest creditworthiness’ local currency rating on the national scale.

“Additionally, we expect the company, over the next 12 to 15 months, to maintain its overall leading market position in the insurance industry in Jamaica,” CariCRIS said of SLJ in its report.

Sagicor Group Jamaica President and CEO Christopher Zacca said the conglomerate is pleased with the ratings and will continue to strive for the highest standards of excellence.

“This reaffirmation of good creditworthiness by CariCRIS is one that is welcomed by Sagicor Group Jamaica, and is indicative of a high level of confidence from objective regional assessors that matches the level of trust that we receive from our clients,” the release quotes Zacca.

“These ratings will further motivate the team as we continually strive to better meet the needs and high expectations of our stakeholders,” he added.

CariCRIS, in a release issued March 31, 2023, also assigned a ‘stable’ outlook to Sagicor’s ability to maintain these ratings in the future.

“The stable outlook is premised on our expectation that the group will remain profitable over the next 12-15 months, underpinned by strong core income, leading market position, and continued technological enhancements to its operations. Further, we believe that the group will comfortably meet all its debt obligations and policyholder liabilities as they come due and maintain adequate capitalisation buffers,” CariCRIS said.

CariCRIS is aimed at fostering and supporting the development of regional debt markets. A CariCRIS credit rating is an objective assessment of an entity’s creditworthiness relative to other debt-issuing entities. It provides a regionally relevant risk assessment of entities and the debt that they issue within a wider context of an analysis of economic trends and financial developments.