US Securities and Exchange Commission for a secondary public offering on behalf of selling shareholders.

The offering is for eight million ordinary shares (excluding an over-allotment option).

It will provide liquidity to shareholders, who did not participate in ACE's initial public offering, which was completed in March, 1993.

The selling shareholders owned their ACE shares prior to October, 1986, when ACE stopped issuing new shares.

A number of the 34 Fortune 500 companies, who formed ACE in 1985, participated in the March initial public offering. It is expected that certain original sponsors will be among the selling shareholders participating in the upcoming public offering.

Founding companies included Eli Lilly & Company, Shell Oil Company, The Dow Chemical Company and General Electric Company.

ACE announced last month that it would contact remaining holders of its non-public shares to determine which would be interested in selling ordinary shares in a public offering.

At September 30, 1993, ACE had about $1.4 billion in shareholders' equity and about $2.3 billion in assets.