Bahrain National Insurance (bni) announced that it is the first company in the kingdom to receive a gcAA rating from Standard and Poor's (S&P).

This is a newly-introduced credit rating specific to companies operating in the GCC.

This positive rating reflects the strength of the bni's operating performance, capitalisation and investments.

S&P also affirmed the bni's BBB+ rating with a stable outlook.

The new rating is based on implementing the same criteria - to analyse business and financial risks and other elements of credit risk - used for the global scale rating.

This allows companies in the region to benchmark themselves against their peers.

'We are very pleased with our ratings and feel very proud to have received it first in the kingdom,' said bni parent company BNH chief executive Mahmood Al Soufi.

'This international recognition is a testimony to the success of our strategic investments and prudent underwriting approach which we'll further develop and nourish to continue our success story.'-TradeArabia News Service