CNA Financial Prices $550 Million Offering Of Senior Notes

CHICAGO, Feb. 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- CNA Financial Corporation CNA today announced that it has priced $550 million aggregate principal amount of 3.950% senior notes due May 15, 2024 in a public offering.  The notes were offered to the public at 99.988% of the principal amount with a yield to maturity of 3.952%.  CNA expects the offering to close on February 27, 2014, subject to customary closing conditions.

CNA intends to use all of the net proceeds from the offering, which are estimated to be approximately $545.6 million, after deducting the underwriting discounts and estimated offering expenses, together with cash on hand and available liquidity, to repurchase, redeem, repay or otherwise retire the $549 million outstanding aggregate principal balance of its 5.850% senior notes due December 15, 2014.  Pending such application, CNA intends to invest the net proceeds of this offering in short-term interest-bearing securities.

Barclays, Citigroup, Wells Fargo Securities, J.P. Morgan and US Bancorp are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering.  An electronic copy of the final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus will be available at the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov. In addition, a copy of the final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to this offering may also be obtained, when available, from:

Barclays Capital Inc., c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, New York 11717, telephone (888) 603-5847 or email Barclaysprospectus@broadridge.com;

Citigroup Global Markets Inc., c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, New York, telephone (800) 831-9146 or email batprospectusdept@citi.com; or

Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, 1525 West W.T. Harris Blvd., NC0675, Charlotte, North Carolina 28262 Attn: Capital Markets Client Support, telephone (800) 326-5897 or email cmclientsupport@wellsfargo.com.

The offering is being made solely by means of a prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus.  This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any securities.

Serving businesses and professionals since 1897, CNA is the country's eighth largest commercial insurance writer and the 13^th largest property and casualty company.  CNA's insurance products include standard commercial lines, specialty lines, surety, marine and other property and casualty coverages.  CNA's services include risk management, information services, underwriting, risk control and claims administration.  For more information, please visit CNA at www.cna.com.  "CNA" is a service mark registered by CNA Financial Corporation with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.  Certain CNA Financial Corporation subsidiaries use the "CNA" service mark in connection with insurance underwriting and claims activities.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENT

This press release may include statements which relate to anticipated future events (forward-looking statements) rather than actual present conditions or historical events.  These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and generally include words such as "believes", "expects", "intends", "anticipates", "estimates", and similar expressions.  Forward-looking statements, by their nature, are subject to a variety of inherent risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results projected.  Many of these risks and uncertainties cannot be controlled by CNA and include CNA's successful completion of the offering and the satisfaction of other customary conditions to the closing of the repurchase, redemption, repayment or retirement of its 5.85% senior notes due December 15, 2014. For a detailed description of these risks and uncertainties please refer to CNA's most recent 10-K on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission available at www.cna.com.

Any forward-looking statements made in this press release are made by CNA as of the date of this press release.  Further, CNA does not have any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement contained in this press release, even if CNA's expectations or any related events, conditions or circumstances change.

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SOURCE CNA Financial Corporation