In 1980, Independence Mortgage Trust, a real estate investment trust, was then reconstituted
as Independence Holding Company ("IHC"). By 1982, the IHC we know today began to take shape with
the acquisition of Standard Security Life Insurance Company of New York and a significant equity stake in
the holding company for Madison National Life Insurance Company, Inc. IHC subsequently acquired 100%
of Madison National. In September 1991, IHC divested of certain non-strategic assets and relocated to Stamford, Connecticut, where we remain today. At that point, the stock traded as low as $.70 per share (adjusted for a reverse stock split and stock dividends). On July 20, 2004, the day we rang the opening bell on the New York Stock Exchange, our stock closed at $22.15 per share.
The 1990's were marked by the steady growth of our insurance operations. Standard Security went through a transition as it transferred its block of individual life business, and built its block of employer medical stop-loss insurance. During this period, we also sold or spun-off our non-insurance assets, added significant capital to Madison National, organically grew our core lines of business, and materially increased our assets through acquiring blocks of business.
In 2002, we started our affiliation with American Independence Corp. (NASDAQ: AMIC). We currently manage AMIC and own 42% of its stock. AMIC's managing general underwriters control the majority of our medical stop-loss business, and its insurance company is one of our largest reinsurers. Today, we are one of the largest writers of employer medical stop-loss in the United States. We specialize in other niche insurance products, including consumer-driven health, short term health, managed healthcare, New York State short-term statutory disability benefit (DBL), group life and disability to school districts and municipalities in the mid-western states, service award programs to volunteer emergency services personnel, individual life with annuity and accumulation fund riders to military and civilian personnel, and credit life and disability primarily through financial institutions. We also acquire blocks of policies from insurers exiting a line of business and from receivers and liquidators.