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

CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwired - July 31, 2015) - Standard & Poor's ¹ has affirmed the A+ (strong) financial strength ratings of two Sammons^® Financial Group, Inc. subsidiaries, Midland National^® Life Insurance Company and North American Company for Life and Health Insurance^®, and maintained its stable outlook for the companies.

"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

Sammons^® Financial Group, Inc. (SFG), an SEI wholly-owned subsidiary, is the parent of a group of member companies under the insurance Holding Company Act made up of several successful financial services companies offering a variety of financial and retirement products through multiple distribution channels. These consist of retirement products, annuities, variable annuities², variable life insurance², and life insurance (including bank, corporate, and credit union-owned life insurance). The member companies of SFG include North American Company for Life and Health Insurance^®, Midland National^® Life Insurance Company, including its divisions, Sammons Annuity Group and Sammons Corporate Markets Group, Sammons Retirement Solutions^® Inc., and Sammons Financial Network^® LLC. For more information, please visit www.sammonsfinancialgroup.com.

1. Standard & Poor's ratings effective July 2, 2015. Standard & Poor's Insurer Financial Strength Rating uses a scale 22 rating categories ranging from AAA (Extremely Strong) to R (Experienced Regulatory Action).
2. The distributor for Midland National's variable products is Sammons Financial Network^® LLC, member FINRA. Sammons Financial Network LLC is a registered broker/dealer under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Sammons Financial Network LLC is an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Sammons Enterprises, Inc., of Dallas, Texas, the ultimate parent company of Midland National^® Life Insurance Company and Sammons Retirement Solutions^® Inc.