(April 10 – 10:30 ET) – Clarica today reported embedded value information for 2000, providing investors with an additional tool to more accurately assess the company’s worth.

Embedded value provides an estimate of the economic worth of a company, excluding any value attributable to future new business. Clarica’s embedded value at December 31, 2000 was $4.1 billion, or $30.55 per common share after common shareholder dividends. This marks an increase of 23% from an estimated $3.3 billion, or $24.88 per share, at the end of 1999.

Clarica says the growth of $6.27 per share reflects the value of new business (80¢ per share), the life retrocession acquisition ($1.02 per share), and management actions, such as price and expense management ($1.09 per share). Other factors make up the balance of the 2000 growth.

The company notes that the same key assumptions and methodology were used for both reporting periods. Among the key assumptions influencing embedded value are the discount rate set at 8.5% and locked-in capital at 150% of Minimum Continuing Capital Surplus Requirement. Other assumptions include inflation rates and tax rates, mortality and expected returns from capital markets.

Clarica says its embedded value has been prepared in accordance with the Canadian Institute of Actuaries’ draft guidance. Eckler Partners Ltd., an independent actuarial consulting firm, has reviewed and provided an opinion on the reasonability of the methods and assumptions used in the calculations.

Bob Astley, president and CEO, said, “Embedded value has the potential to be an effective measure, both for external disclosure and for internal management of the business. For Clarica, embedded value adds another important and valuable perspective on the creation of shareholder value. It is highly informative in that it recognizes some elements not included in Canadian GAAP which makes it a valuable tool in understanding ‘where’ we are creating shareholder value.”

“To complement our existing GAAP reporting, we intend to use embedded value as a guide for managing the affairs and performance of the company,” he said. “Many major public life insurers in the United Kingdom, Europe and elsewhere outside North America publish embedded value information as a measure of financial performance for shareholder reporting and internal performance measurement.”