S&P Affirms A+ Ratings of Midland National and North American Life

Chicago, IL | July 31, 2015

"The S&P rating is a strong indicator of our financial ability to fulfill our obligations," said Esfand Dinshaw, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for Sammons Financial Group. "Having our rating reaffirmed gives our policyholders confidence in our commitment to maintaining stability and creating long-term value for them."

In a report issued by S&P, the rating agency noted the strong competitive position of the Sammons Financial Group subsidiaries, "We view Sammons' competitive position as strong, reflecting the company's well-balanced portfolio of life insurance, annuity and BOLI/COLI products, as well as its proven ability to generate profitable growth in all of its key business segments."

S&P also noted the following factors in affirming the ratings for the Sammons Financial Group companies:

• - Strong competitive position, supported by well-established distribution relationships and strong market share
• - Very strong capital and earnings score, driven by continued robust net income and strong capital base
• - High-quality and well-diversified investment portfolio, with weighted average credit quality of 'A'
• - Favorable operating performance relative to peers