AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America and Its Subsidiary.

ENPNewswire-July 29, 2021--AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America and Its Subsidiary

(C)2021 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk

Release date- 28072021 - AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A++ (Superior) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) of 'aaa' (Exceptional) of Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America (TIAA) and its wholly owned insurance subsidiary, TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Company (TIAA-CREF Life).

TIAA and TIAA-CREF Life collectively are referred to as the TIAA Group. Concurrently, AM Best has affirmed the Long-Term ICRs of 'aa' (Superior) on TIAA's surplus notes. The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. TIAA and TIAA-CREF Life are domiciled in New York, NY. (Please see below for detailed listing of the Long-Term IRs).

The ratings reflect TIAA Group's balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strongest, as well as its very strong operating performance, very favorable business profile and very strong enterprise risk management.

The rating affirmations reflect TIAA's market-leading position in the higher education and not-for-profit pension marketplaces. TIAA, together with its wholly owned subsidiary, College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF), enjoys significant economies of scale, and combined form one of the largest retirement systems in the United States with assets under administration of more than $1.4 trillion at year-end 2020. TIAA-CREF Life's primary products are life insurance, individual annuities, funding agreements and separate account guaranteed interest contracts. Individual life and annuity products are marketed to customers of TIAA, as well as to the general public.

The ratings also reflect TIAA's risk-adjusted capitalization at the strongest level, as measured by Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR). Risk-adjusted capitalization has been enhanced by its very strong operating performance, which has more than offset realized investment losses in recent years. TIAA has significant statutory accounting flexibility to manage its risk-adjusted capital position, including the ability to adjust crediting rates on its large in-force block of general account retirement annuities. TIAA uses a conservative approach to statutory reserves, and as a result, its balance sheet contains a considerable amount of hidden capital. AM Best notes that TIAA's current adjusted financial leverage and operating...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT