Fitch Upgrades Capital One; Places North Fork on Watch Negative.NEW YORK New York, state, United StatesNew York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of -- Fitch Ratings Fitch Ratings An international rating agency for financial institutions, insurance companies, and corporate, sovereign, and municipal debt. Fitch Ratings has headquarters in New York and London and is wholly owned by FIMALAC of Paris. has upgraded the long-term issuer default rating (IDR IDR In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the Indonesian Rupiah. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. ) of Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) to 'BBB+' from 'BBB' and removed it from Rating Watch Positive. COF's Rating Outlook is Positive. Concurrent with this action, Fitch has placed the long-term IDR of North Fork North Fork, river, c.100 mi (160 km) long, rising in the Ozarks, S Mo., and flowing S, into N Ark., to the White River. Near its mouth is Norfolk Dam (completed 1944), which impounds Norfolk Lake and has a power plant. Bancorporation, Inc. (NFB NFB National Federation of the Blind NFB National Film Board of Canada NFB Negative Feedback NFB No Fuse Breaker NFB Normal for Bridgewater (music album) ) on Rating Watch Negative. A complete list of affected ratings is detailed at the end of this release. Approximately $91 billion of debt and deposits are affected by these actions. The upgrade of COF primarily reflects its progress integrating Hibernia Corp. (HIB Hib abbr. Haemophilus influenzae type b ), which COF acquired in November 2005, as well as relatively stable operating performance in COF's core consumer finance businesses. Moreover, Fitch is encouraged that the spike in bankruptcies witnessed in October 2005 has abated and consumer defaults will likely remain within current ranges through the remainder of the year. Fitch believes that HIB is well positioned to benefit from revitalization efforts in hurricane affected areas. While the timing and success of such efforts can not yet be determined, Fitch recognizes HIB's ability to maintain its leading competitive position in Louisiana and expansion efforts in Texas. The Positive Outlook reflects the view that COF can enhance its franchise through this acquisition, which Fitch views as transformational. NFB brings with it a material residential mortgage banking platform, an area in which COF has a small presence, as well as strong deposit share in the New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. metropolitan area. Over time, Fitch believes that COF's performance metrics Performance metrics are measures of an organizations activities and performance. Performance metrics should support a range of stakeholder needs from customers, shareholders to employees [1]. will more closely resemble those of a commercial bank. Fitch believes that NFB will be more challenged to integrate, particularly following closely on the HIB acquisition, although this risk is mitigated by COF's record in integrating acquired companies and retaining key management. In considering whether COF is upgraded, Fitch will evaluate COF's ability to fully leverage its banking acquisitions by funding a greater portion of its assets through core deposits. In addition, Fitch will evaluate COF's capital management plans with particular attention to tangible capital ratios and balance sheet risk. Fitch will also consider COF's ability to maintain sound competitive positions and performance in credit card, auto finance, and other consumer lending Consumer lending or consumer loans refers to any type of loan product that is not a mortgage; such as a car, boat, manufactured home, home equity loan, home equity line of credit, signature loan, signature line of credit, recreational vehicle, or Certificate of Deposit loans. segments. The Rating Watch Negative for NFB reflects the likelihood that ratings of NFB may be downgraded and equalized with those of COF following the closing of the transaction. This transaction requires COF and NFB shareholder approvals as well as regulatory approvals. The purchase is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2006. Given the size and complexities involved, Fitch would anticipate revisiting the Positive Outlook 12-18 months following the closing. Fitch upgrades and removes from Rating Watch Positive the following ratings; the Outlook is Positive: Capital One Financial Corp. --Long-term IDR to 'BBB+' from 'BBB'; --Senior debt to 'BBB+' from 'BBB'. Capital One Bank --Long-term IDR to 'BBB+' from 'BBB'; --Senior debt to 'BBB+' from 'BBB'. --Long-term deposits to 'A-' from 'BBB+'; Capital One FSB (FrontSide Bus) See system bus. FSB - front side bus --Long-term deposits to 'A-' from 'BBB+'; --Long-term IDR to 'BBB+' from 'BBB'; --Subordinated debt to 'BBB' from 'BBB-'. Hibernia Corporation --Subordinated Debt to 'BBB' from 'BBB-'. Hibernia National Bank For other uses of "Hibernia", see Hibernia (disambiguation). Hibernia National Bank, founded in 1870, was a personal banking and commercial lending institution headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana. --Long-term IDR to 'BBB+' from 'BBB'; --Long-term deposits to 'A-' from 'BBB+'; --Senior debt to 'BBB+' from 'BBB'. Fitch places the following on Rating Watch Negative: North Fork Bancorporation, Inc. --Long-term IDR 'A-'; --Short-term 'F1'; --Individual 'B'; --Subordinated 'BBB+'; --Preferred Stock 'BBB+'. North Fork Bank North Fork Bank was an American bank headquartered in Melville, New York purchased by Capital One at the end of 2006 for $14.6 billion U.S. dollars. It was only the second bank bought by Capital One, and was the larger of two acquisitions comprising Capital One's 2005-06 expansion --Long-term IDR 'A-'; --Long-term deposits 'A'; --Short-term 'F1'; --Individual 'B'. GreenPoint Financial Corp. --Senior debt 'A-'. GreenPoint Bank --Long-term deposit 'A'; --Subordinate 'BBB+'. North Fork Capital Trust I & II GreenPoint Capital Trust I --Trust preferred 'BBB+'. Fitch affirms the following with a Positive Outlook: Capital One Financial Corp. --Short-term 'F2'; --Individual 'B/C'. Capital One Bank Capital One FSB Hibernia National Bank --Short-term 'F2'; --Short-term deposits 'F2'; --Individual 'B/C'. Capital One Capital I --Trust Preferred 'BBB-'. Fitch affirms the following ratings: Capital One Financial Corp. Capital One Bank Capital One FSB Hibernia National Bank North Fork Bancorporation North Fork Bank --Support '5'. Coastal Capital Trust I --Trust Preferred 'AA-'. Fitch's rating definitions and the terms of use Terms of Use are rules set up by the owner of an intellectual property or service to govern how they may be legally used. In many cases, terms of service are used as a contractual agreement between a company and users of a service they provide. of such ratings are available on the agency's public site, www.fitchratings.com. Published ratings, criteria and methodologies are available from this site, at all times. Fitch's code of conduct, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, affiliate firewall, compliance and other relevant policies and procedures Policies and Procedures are a set of documents that describe an organization's policies for operation and the procedures necessary to fulfill the policies. They are often initiated because of some external requirement, such as environmental compliance or other governmental are also available from the 'Code of Conduct' section of this site. |
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