AM Best Assigns Issue Credit Rating to Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited Senior Unsecured Notes; Comments on Re-Opened Senior Unsecured Notes

Executive Summary

• A.M. Best assigned a Long‑Term Issue Credit Rating of “a‑” (Excellent) with stable outlook to Fairfax Financial Holdings’ newly issued CAD 400 million, 4.4% senior unsecured notes due February 2036.
• The rating for the existing CAD 300 million, 5.1% senior unsecured notes due August 2055 remains unchanged at “a‑” (Excellent) with stable outlook, despite the addition of new notes to the series.
• Fairfax announced an additional CAD 250 million of senior unsecured notes, bringing total issuance in the series to CAD 550 million; proceeds will be used for debt refinancing, potential acquisitions, and general corporate purposes.

Key Details

• Rating Assigned: Long‑Term Issue Credit Rating “a‑” (Excellent) – stable outlook for CAD 400 M 4.4% notes due 2036.
• Existing Series Rating: “a‑” (Excellent) – stable outlook unchanged for CAD 300 M 5.1% notes due 2055 after addition of new notes.
• Additional Issuance: Fairfax issued an extra CAD 250 million of senior unsecured notes, increasing total series size to CAD 550 million.
• Use of Proceeds: Net proceeds earmarked for refinancing, repayment or redemption of existing debt/equity obligations, pursuing acquisition or investment opportunities (including minority interests in subsidiaries), and general corporate purposes.
• Issuer Credit Rating: Fairfax’s Long‑Term Issuer Credit Rating and ratings of its operating subsidiaries remain unchanged.
• Source Confirmation: Ratings published on A.M. Best’s website; detailed disclosures available via the “Recent Rating Activity” page.

Notable Quotes

(No executive quotes were provided in the release.)