Item 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

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Item 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

In connection with the filing of this Form 10-K, our management, including the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, conducted an evaluation, as of December 31, 2017, for the purposes set forth in the applicable rules under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Based on that evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the disclosure controls and procedures are effective.

We continue to enhance our operating procedures and internal controls (including information technology initiatives and controls over financial reporting) to effectively support our business and our regulatory and reporting requirements. Our management does not expect that our disclosure controls or our internal controls will prevent all errors and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the control system are met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. As a result of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within the company have been detected. These inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision making can be faulty, and that breakdowns can occur because of simple error or mistake. Additionally, controls can be circumvented by the individual acts of some persons or by collusion of two or more people.

The design of any system of controls also is based in part upon certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions; over time, controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate. As a result of the inherent limitations in a cost-effective control system, misstatement due to error or fraud may occur and not be detected. Accordingly, our disclosure controls and procedures are designed to provide reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the disclosure controls and procedures are met.

Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act. Our management assessed the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2017. In making this assessment, management used the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) of the Treadway Commission in Internal Control-Integrated Framework (2013).

On December 31, 2016, we acquired all of the issued and outstanding capital stock of UGC. As allowed under SEC guidance, management’s assessment of and conclusion regarding the design and effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting excluded the internal control over financial reporting of UGC until the 2017 fourth quarter. The financial reporting systems of UGC have been fully integrated into our financial reporting systems and we have performed an assessment of UGC’s internal control over financial reporting for this current year-end.

Based on our assessment, management determined that, as of December 31, 2017, our internal control over financial reporting was effective. The effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2017 has been audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their report included in Item 8.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

There have been no changes in internal control over financial reporting that occurred in connection with our evaluation required pursuant to Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the Exchange Act during the fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2017, other than the inclusion of UGC noted above, that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, internal control over financial reporting.

ARCH CAPITAL1752017 FORM 10-K

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