ACE Now Has Swiss Domicile

Bermuda-based ACE Limited said today that the firm has completed the change in its registered corporate domicile from Cayman Islands to Zurich Switzerland.

The firm had announced it was making the change for its holding company in March to protect its reputation, secure a better tax situation and have an improved location to manage its capital.

Despite the redomestication, ACE said it continues to be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and prepare its financial statements in U.S. dollars and in accordance with U.S. GAAP reporting.

It added that shareholders will continue to receive dividends in U.S. dollars, and the company's common shares will continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol ACE.

At the ACE Annual General Meeting, held July 10 and 14, ACE's shareholders approved all proposals voted upon.

The redomestication became official following governmental filings made in the Cayman Islands and Switzerland, and the establishment of the holding company in Zurich.

Corporate governance and other changes effected as part of the redomestication, including new charter documents and the increase in the par value of common shares of the company, were described in a May 30 SEC filings on Form 8-K and the company's May 30 proxy statement/prospectus online at www.sec.gov.

“This is an historic day for ACE as we commence operations as a Swiss company,” said Evan G. Greenberg, ACE Limited chairman and chief executive officer. “We are grateful to our shareholders, who understand the strategic wisdom of this move and overwhelmingly adopted all of our redomestication proposals.”

In March, when he announced the change would be made, Mr. Greenberg said, “Cayman brings little to us, yet it exposes us from a reputational, financial and tax perspective and creates unnecessary uncertainty while bringing little.”

He did not provide specifics, but firms located in island venues have been criticized as tax havens and locations where regulatory oversight and transparency are less rigorous than U.S. standards.