Ironshore Europe Ltd has been assigned a financial strength rating of A- (excellent) and an issuer credit rating of “a-”. The outlook assigned to both ratings is stable.The newly-created strategic affiliate of Ironshore Insurance Ltd (Ironshore) that provides a European operating platform to complement the company’s existing Lloyd’s presence. The company will be utilised to expand Ironshore’s existing suite of specialty products and it will target internationally placed US risks and international business.Best said that the assigned ratings reflected Ironshore Europe’s strong risk-adjusted capitalisation and the explicit support provided by Ironshore, which includes a significant internal reinsurance commitment.Partially offsetting these positive rating factors is the execution risk associated with starting a new company, said the ratings agency. In addition, Ironshore’s broader strategy exposes it to a fair amount of credit risk based on its reinsurance dependence within its operating strategies.