Allied World Launches Trade Credit and Political Risk Insurance Platform; Announces Agreement With Latin American Underwriters

PEMBROKE, Bermuda, October 6, 2010 - Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, Ltd (NYSE: AWH) today announced
that Allied World's Bermuda and London operations, together with Latin
American Underwriters (LAU), will begin underwriting trade credit and
political risk insurance effective immediately. The primary focus of the
venture is to provide short and medium-term credit insurance for clients that
export to and from Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as to provide
political risk insurance for exposures in the same regions.

Frank D'Orazio, President, Bermuda & International Insurance, commented,
"As a result of improved underwriting conditions and the expected growth in
the GDP and trade in Latin America, Allied World sees a tremendous niche
opportunity within the trade credit and political risk market. We partnered
with Latin American Underwriters because of their extensive expertise in the
marketplace and their existing relationships in the region. I am confident
that together we will meet our clients' increased needs for these specialty
products."

Robert E. Svensk, President, Latin American Underwriters, commented, "The
partnership with Allied World allows LAU to provide our clients and brokers
with skilled and experienced underwriting responses, meaningful capacity and
financial security from a leading and trusted global carrier. We are
delighted to have concluded this agreement with Allied World which will bring
much needed new capacity to our market at a time of rising demand and
heightened risk awareness. We look forward to supporting Allied World's
mission to become one of the leading markets for this class of insurance."

LAU will target clients with Latin American or Caribbean import and/or
export exposures and investors, contractors and financial institutions with
exposures in the region.

For more information about the products offered by this venture please
contact: Latin American Underwriters at info@lau-credit.com.

About Allied World Assurance Company

Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, Ltd, through its subsidiaries,
is a global provider of innovative property, casualty and specialty insurance
and reinsurance solutions, offering superior client service through a global
network of branches and affiliates. Our insurance and reinsurance
subsidiaries are rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best Company, and our Lloyd's
Syndicate 2232 is rated A+ (Strong) by Standard & Poor's and Fitch. Please
visit our website at www.awac.com for further information on Allied
World.

About Latin American Underwriters

LAU is a licensed insurance producer in Bermuda with offices in London,
Ecuador and Connecticut. It was established in 2010 by Bob Svensk, Nick
Hedley, Peter Swain, Victor Pocius and Tom Kane, who collectively have over
170 years of experience in insurance, banking, trade finance, and
credit-and-collections. The depth and diversity of relevant experience
represented by the LAU principals, coupled with LAU's clear focus on Latin
America and the Caribbean, make it uniquely well qualified to become your
partner of choice in the Export Credit and Political Risk market. You can
visit LAU's website at www.lau-credit.com.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Any forward-looking statements made in this press release reflect our
current views with respect to future events and financial performance and are
made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve risks and
uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from those
set forth in these statements. For example, our forward-looking statements
could be affected by pricing and policy term trends; increased competition;
the impact of acts of terrorism and acts of war; greater frequency or
severity of unpredictable catastrophic events; negative rating agency
actions; the adequacy of our loss reserves; the company or its subsidiaries
becoming subject to significant income taxes in the United States or
elsewhere; changes in regulations or tax laws; changes in the availability,
cost or quality of reinsurance or retrocessional coverage; adverse general
economic conditions; and judicial, legislative, political and other
governmental developments, as well as management's response to these factors,
and other factors identified in our filings with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are
made. We are under no obligation (and expressly disclaim any such obligation)
to update or revise any forward-looking statement that may be made from time
to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or
otherwise.

Media, Faye Cook, VP, Marketing & Communications, +1-441-278-5406, faye.cook at awac.com, or Investors, Keith J. Lennox, Investor Relations Officer, +1-646-794-0750, keith.lennox at awac.com