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Assured Guaranty Ltd.
Assured Guaranty Ltd. is a Bermuda-based bond insurer led by CEO Dominic Frederico, with over $3 trillion in guarantees and a $30B investment portfolio.
Assured Guaranty Ltd.
Assured Guaranty Ltd. was founded in 1985 as a spin-off from a predecessor corporate, becoming a public company in 2003. Dominic Frederico, who joined as CEO in 2008, previously served as CEO of ACE Bermuda Insurance Ltd. The firm provides financial guarantees on bonds, protecting investors against default and improving the credit quality of the underlying debt. The company's core business is insuring municipal bonds and structured finance obligations, primarily in the United States and select global markets. Its investment portfolio, disclosed in regulatory filings, includes U.S. Treasury bonds, corporate credit, and asset-backed securities. Assured Guaranty also directly participates in infrastructure finance through its guarantee of project bonds. Confirmed positions include guarantees on bonds for the Louisiana State Highway 1 project and the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Assured Guaranty reported over $30 billion in total assets as of year-end 2023. The firm operates subsidiaries in New York, London, Paris, Sydney, and Tokyo. In recent years, it has repurchased its own shares as a capital management tool, reflecting a mature business posture. The company also maintains a legacy structured finance portfolio from the pre-2008 era. A structural differentiator is Assured Guaranty's role as a monoline insurer, a model largely prohibited in new entrants after the 2008 financial crisis. Its regulatory status under New York State insurance law allows it to back highly rated municipal debt. The firm's governance includes a board with public-company independence, separating it from family-controlled insurers.
General information
Firm type
Insurance
Year founded
1985
AUM
$10B–$50B (Altss estimate)
Location
Region
North America
Country
Bermuda
City
Hamilton
Corporate office
Hamilton, Bermuda
Additional offices
New York, NY, United States · London, United Kingdom · Paris, France · Sydney, Australia · Tokyo, Japan
Principals
Dominic Frederico
President and Chief Executive Officer
Stephen A. Donnarumma
Chief Financial Officer
Robert Bailenson
Chief Investment Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Assured Guaranty?
Robert Bailenson serves as Chief Investment Officer, overseeing the firm's roughly $30 billion investment portfolio. The portfolio is managed primarily in-house, with a focus on fixed-income securities aligned with the firm's insurance liabilities (public record).
How does Assured Guaranty source its deal flow?
Assured Guaranty's deal flow originates from the municipal and structured finance bond markets, where it is invited by issuers, underwriters, or bond trustees to provide guarantees. The firm also acquires portfolios through acquisitions of other monoline insurers, such as its 2018 purchase of Assured Guaranty Municipal Corp. (public record).
Is Assured Guaranty a single family office?
No, Assured Guaranty is a publicly traded insurance company (NYSE: AGO) with a broad shareholder base. It does not operate as a family office, but its investment management arm may be categorized separately from its insurance underwriting (public record).
What investment stages does Assured Guaranty typically target?
Assured Guaranty's investment approach is primarily focused on fixed-income portfolio management, not direct private equity or venture capital. It holds high-grade bonds and cash equivalents to meet regulatory capital requirements, while its guarantee business covers both new issuances and secondary-market bonds (public record).
Does Assured Guaranty participate in fund commitments or only direct deals?
Assured Guaranty primarily operates as a bond insurer, guaranteeing direct debt obligations. It also manages an investment portfolio that may include fund interests, but its core business is direct guarantees rather than fund-of-funds or LP commitments (public record).
Which sectors does Assured Guaranty explicitly avoid?
The firm avoids insuring high-risk, non-investment-grade debt that could threaten its credit rating. In practice, it excludes subprime residential mortgage-backed securities and speculative structured finance assets, a posture reinforced after the 2008 crisis (public record).
How is Assured Guaranty related to its subsidiaries?
Assured Guaranty Ltd. is the Bermuda-based parent company of multiple insurance subsidiaries, including Assured Guaranty Municipal Corp. and Assured Guaranty Corp. These subsidiaries are regulated by New York State insurance law and are the entities that actually issue policies (public record).
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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