Fitch Upgrades L-T & S-T Ratings For Croatia's Zagrebacka Banka.Business Editors LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 6, 2002 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. , the international ratings agency has today upgraded the Long-term rating of Zagrebacka banka (ZB) to 'BBB-' from 'BB+' and its short-term rating to 'F3' from 'B'. At the same time the ratings have been removed from Rating Watch Positive and a Stable Rating Outlook is in place. In addition, Fitch has changed ZB's support rating to '3' from '2'. ZB's individual rating of 'C/D' is affirmed. This rating action follows the announcement yesterday that the consortium of UniCredito Italiano (UCI UCI University of California, Irvine UCI Union Cycliste Internationale (International Cycling Union) UCI Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos UCI United Cinemas International (UK) , rated 'AA-' by Fitch) and Allianz, the German insurer, had reached a 59.1% voting stake in ZB following the offer it made on 15 February 2002 for ZB's share capital. The consortium has waved the condition that valid acceptance of the offers must have been received in respect of at least 70% of voting shares Voting Shares Shares that give the stockholder the right to vote on matters of corporate policy making as well as who will compose the members of the board of directors. Notes: Different classes of shares, such as preferred stock, sometimes don't allow for voting rights. it did not already hold. UCI and Allianz already held approximately 10% of the voting shares each, bringing their combined shareholding in the bank to 79.1%. The change in the support rating reflects Fitch's view that UCI will, if necessary, provide support for ZB. The Italian bank has established a good track record in Central and Eastern Europe The term "Central and Eastern Europe" came into wide spread use, replacing "Eastern bloc", to describe former Communist countries in Europe, after the collapse of the Iron Curtain in 1989/90. in the acquisition and restructuring of banks and ZB should be able to take advantage of its experience from its other investments in the region. Other UCI subsidiaries include Bank Pekao in Poland. Although ZB is expected to maintain its local identity, it will gain access to new products, cheaper funding and improved risk management systems. UCI has already invested approximately 15% of its assets in the region and so far has been able to derive substantial benefits from these investments. The long- and short-term ratings of ZB are constrained con·strain tr.v. con·strained, con·strain·ing, con·strains 1. To compel by physical, moral, or circumstantial force; oblige: felt constrained to object. See Synonyms at force. 2. by Croatia's sovereign ceiling. With total assets of HRK HRK Croatian Kuna currency. (The ISO 4217 currency code) 38.5 billion (EUR EUR In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the Euro. 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. 5.3 billion) and equity of HRK3.6 billion (EUR495 million) at end-June 2001, ZB is the largest bank in Croatia. It is a universal bank providing corporate, retail and investment banking products. It has several subsidiaries, including a 93.8% stake in Varazdinska banka, a medium-sized, regional Croatian bank, a 72.9% stake in Zagrebacka banka BH, the largest private bank in Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina (bŏz`nēə, hĕrtsəgōvē`nə), Serbo-Croatian Bosna i Hercegovina, country (2005 est. pop. 4,025,000), 19,741 sq mi (51,129 sq km), on the Balkan peninsula, S Europe. , and 95.4% in Universal Bank Sarajevo. In order to obtain the approval of the Central Bank of Croatia, UCI has recently announced that it had reached an agreement with BankAustria for the sale of its other subsidiary in Croatia, Splitska Banka. |
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