HAMILTON, Bermuda, Dec. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited ("Aspen") (NYSE:AHL)(BSX:AHLBSX:BH) today announced that on December 21, 2006 it entered into an accelerated share repurchase program with Goldman, Sachs & Co. to buy back $44 million of Aspen's ordinary shares. The agreement includes collar provisions that establish the minimum and maximum numbers of shares to be repurchased. The program is expected to be completed within three months. Based on Aspen's closing share price on December 21, 2006, the $44 million share repurchase represents approximately 1.9% percent of the Company's total market capitalization. The repurchase was made under the terms of Aspen's share repurchase program authorized by the Board of Directors and announced on November 8, 2006, for a total repurchase program of up to $300 million of its ordinary shares within two years. Following this repurchase there will be approximately $100 million remaining of the Board authorized repurchase program. The majority of the purchase price is funded with the proceeds of the sale of Aspen's 7.401% perpetual non-cumulative preference shares, which closed on November 15, 2006. The ordinary shares will be retired once purchased. Julian Cusack, Chief Financial Officer of Aspen said, "This repurchase is further evidence of Aspen's commitment to capital management and improving returns to shareholders. We are very optimistic about Aspen's business prospects for 2007 and believe our willingness to repurchase shares is a testament to our confidence in Aspen's continued success." About Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited was established in June 2002. Aspen is a Bermudian holding company that provides property and casualty reinsurance in the global market, property and liability insurance principally in the United Kingdom and the United States and specialty insurance and reinsurance consisting mainly of marine and energy and aviation worldwide. Aspen's operations are conducted through its wholly-owned subsidiaries located in London, Bermuda and the United States: Aspen Insurance UK Limited, Aspen Insurance Limited and Aspen Specialty Insurance Company. Aspen has four operating segments: property reinsurance, casualty reinsurance, specialty insurance and reinsurance and property and casualty insurance. For more information about Aspen, please visit the Company's website at http://www.aspen.bm/. Application of the Safe Harbor of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 This press release contains written, and Aspen's officers may make related oral, "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws regarding the possible repurchase of Aspen's ordinary shares and the financing of any such repurchases. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include all statements that do not relate solely to historical or current facts, and can be identified by the use of words such as "expect," "intend," "plan," "believe," "project," "anticipate," "seek," "will," "estimate," "may," "continue," and similar expressions of a future or forward-looking nature. All forward-looking statements rely on a number of assumptions concerning future events and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside Aspen's control that could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. Any ordinary share repurchases by Aspen are subject to rating agency considerations, the market price of the ordinary shares, Aspen's ongoing sources and uses of cash and the liquidity requirements of its insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries. For a more detailed description of additional uncertainties and other factors that could impact the forward-looking statements in this release, please see the "Risk Factors" section in Aspen's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on March 6, 2006. DATASOURCE: Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited CONTACT: Investor Contact - Tania Kerno, Head of Communications, +44-20-7184-8855, or Noah Fields, Head of Investor Relations, +1-441-297-9382, both of Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited; or European Press Contact - Brian Hudspith of The Maitland Consultancy, +44-20-7379-5151l or North American Press Contact - Eliza Johnson of Abernathy MacGregor, +1-212-371-5999 Web site: http://www.aspen.bm/

Copyright