RB 18/2015 - BOŚ S.A. rating changed - released 20 May 2015

In fulfilment of provisions of § 5 subpara. 1 point 26 of the Regulation of the Minister of Finance of 19 February 2009 on current and interim reports published by issuers of securities and conditions deemed equivalent to information required under regulations of a non-member state, the Management Board of Bank Ochrony Środowiska S.A. with registered seat in Warsaw (the Bank) announces that it learnt,
20 May 2015, of a 19 May 2015 Fitch Ratings Ltd (the Agency) decision to downgrade the following ratings of BOŚ S.A.: Long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and senior debt ratings to 'BB' from 'BBB', and its National Long-term Rating to
'BBB(pol)' from 'A(pol)'. The Outlooks remain Negative. The Viability Rating (VR) has been affirmed at 'bb'.
The rating actions are in conjunction with Fitch's review of sovereign support for banks globally, which the agency announced in March 2014 (the Bank reported in its RB 13/2014 of 28 March 2014). The agency said it believed that regulatory initiatives have substantially reduced the likelihood of sovereign support for U.S., Swiss and EU commercial banks.
Fitch said it believed that state institutions would endeavour to act pre-emptively to avoid BOŚ S.A. breaching regulatory capital adequacy requirements, yet the combination of Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD) and EU state aid considerations seeking to curb sovereign support has reduced the overall probability of extraordinary sovereign support being provided to this Bank.
The changes in BOŚ S.A. ratings were as follows:

Long-term IDR in foreign currency (Long-term IDR) was downgraded from

'BBB' to 'BB', Outlook Negative,

Short-term IDR in foreign currency (Short-term IDR) was downgraded from

'F3' do 'B',

National Long-term Rating was downgraded from 'A(pol)' to 'BBB', Outlook

Negative,

National Short-term Rating was downgraded from 'F1(pol)' to 'F3(pol)',

Viability Rating was affirmed at 'bb',

Support Rating was downgraded from '4' to '2',

Support Rating Floor was revised from 'BBB' to 'B',

PLN 2 bn senior unsecured bond programme was downgraded from 'A(pol)' to

'BBB(pol)',

PLN 2 bn senior unsecured bond programme was downgraded from 'F1(pol)'

to 'F3(pol)',

PLN 83 mn series R1 subordinated debt was affirmed at 'BBB-(pol)'.

Rating for EUR 250 mn long-term senior unsecured eurobonds issued by

BOS Finance AB was downgraded from 'BBB' to 'BB'.

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