Bahrain Kuwait Insurance Company (BKIC), one of the largest insurance firms operating in the kingdom, has been assigned a financial strength rating of  "A- (Excellent)" and issuer credit rating of "a-" by A M Best Europe Rating Services.

A M Best confirmed that the rating reflects BKIC's strong capitalisation, conservative investment strategy, excellent track record of technical profits and an excellent domestic franchise, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

BKIC chief executive Ebrahim Al Rayes said the outlook of both ratings remained stable.

BKIC is a member of the Gulf Insurance Group, which owns 56 per cent of its shares. The total profit at the end of 2011 was equivalent to $11 million, and a return on equity of approximately 15 per cent.-TradeArabia News Service