Knights of Columbus Earns Top Rating from A.M. Best for 39th Consecutive Year

Financial Strength Rated A++ (Superior)

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Jun 24, 2014, 05:37 ET

NEW HAVEN, Conn., June 24, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Citing the Knights of Columbus' strong presence in Catholic communities and its members' loyalty, ratings agency A.M. Best reaffirmed the K of C's rating of A++ (Superior) for financial strength.

This week's rating announcement marks the 39th consecutive year that the Knights of Columbus earned A.M. Best's top marks. The Catholic fraternal benefit society, founded in 1882 by the Venerable Father Michael J. McGivney, has $94 billion of life insurance in force and $21 billion in assets under management. No insurer in North America is more highly rated than the Knights of Columbus.

"Our top rating from A.M Best underscores our commitment to our members and their families," said Carl Anderson, CEO of the Knights of Columbus. "We were founded to protect the financial futures of Catholic families, and we take that obligation seriously. In our sales, operations and investments, we keep in mind that Knights and their families are more than customers, they are members of our fraternal family."

Anderson added: "We credit our commitment to our members, our excellent sales force of agents who are all Knights of Columbus, and our commitment to our Catholic values, which are the keys to the work we do."

Earlier this year, the Knights of Columbus was named a 2014 "World's Most Ethical Company" by the Ethisphere Institute — an independent center for research promoting best practices in corporate ethics and governance. It was one of two companies named in the "life insurance" category, and one of fewer than 150 total companies worldwide.

A.M. Best noted that the rating of the Knights of Columbus "reflects its strong fraternal and insurance presence within the Catholic communities in the United States and Canada, its strong risk-adjusted capitalizations as measured by Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio, and its consistently positive statutory operating results."

It added that the Knights of Columbus "has a strong affinity with its large membership base through its charitable programs and competitive portfolio of life insurance and annuity products."

The Knights of Columbus is the world's largest Catholic fraternal organization, with more than 1.8 million members worldwide. Last year, Knights set new records for giving, with more than $170 million and 70 million hours of service donated to charitable causes.

SOURCE Knights of Columbus