On Dec. 19, 2008, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'BB+' counterparty credit rating on American Equity Investment Life Holding Co. (AEIL) and its 'BBB+' counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on AEIL's operating company, American Equity Investment Life Insurance Co. (AEL). The outlook remains negative. We affirmed the ratings to reflect the SEC's approval of Rule 151A, which regulates the principal product sold by AEL. Despite the challenges this regulation brings, AEL should be able to handle the transition with the longer implementation period, as the regulation will be enacted two years from now. In July 2008, we revised our outlook on AEIL and AEL to negative from stable following the SEC's announcement of the proposal. This reflected
