Assured Guaranty Corp. Guarantees $400 Million Student Loan Transaction for Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority

Business Wire, Sept 17, 2008

NEW YORK -- Assured Guaranty Corp. ("Assured" or the "Company"), the triple-A rated financial guaranty subsidiary of Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO), announced today that it guaranteed $400 million of fixed rate tax exempt bonds for the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority ("MEFA") with Morgan Stanley serving as lead underwriter.

"We are pleased that MEFA selected Assured to participate in this significant transaction for Massachusetts," noted Mike Schozer, President of Assured Guaranty Corp. "This is Assured's second new issue student loan transaction this year. We look forward to working with other states on similar cost-effective transactions that will help provide college financing to their residents."

The MEFA bonds will help to provide Massachusetts residents as well as non-Massachusetts residents that attend Massachusetts schools with education loans to finance their graduate or undergraduate education. MEFA is a non-profit state authority that works to make higher education more accessible and affordable through community education programs, college savings plans and low-cost financing options.

For nearly thirty years, families have relied upon MEFA to offer creative financing solutions. Again this year, Massachusetts families are able to obtain affordable fixed interest rate education loans through the success of this transaction. According to Thomas Graf, MEFA's Executive Director, "MEFA's partnership with Assured was an important component in achieving this significant transaction during challenging economic times."

Assured also announced today that through September 15, 2008, the Company insured 30 transactions for $622.7 million of par in the direct new issue U.S. public finance market, representing 4.9% of total public finance volume and 31.8% of insured activity, a significant increase compared to the same period in September 2007 in which Assured wrapped 8 transactions for $80.5 million of par, or 0.6% of total public finance volume and 1.0% of insured activity.

Assured Guaranty Corp. is a leading provider of financial guaranty insurance in the U.S. and international public finance, structured finance and mortgage-backed securities markets. Assured Guaranty Corp. is rated triple-A by the three leading rating agencies and is licensed in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

Assured Guaranty Ltd. is a Bermuda-based holding company. Its operating subsidiaries provide credit enhancement products to the U.S. and international public finance, structured finance and mortgage markets. More information can be found at www.assuredguaranty.com.

Any forward-looking statements made in this press release reflect the Company's 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 that may cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in these statements. For example, the Company's forward-looking statements, including its statements regarding the expansion of the consumer and mortgage-backed securities business, could be affected by a significant reduction in the amount of reinsurance ceded by one or more of our principal ceding companies, rating agency action such as a ratings downgrade, difficulties with the execution of the Company's business strategy, contract cancellations, developments in the world's financial and capital markets, more severe or frequent losses associated with products affecting the adequacy of the Company's loss reserve, changes in regulation or tax laws, governmental actions, natural catastrophes, the Company's dependence on customers, decreased demand or increased competition, loss of key personnel, technological developments, the effects of mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, changes in accounting policies or practices, changes in general economic conditions, other risks and uncertainties that have not been identified at this time, management's response to these factors, and other risk factors identified in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the dates on which they are made. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.