S&P Asgns Prelim Rtgs in Banif's Portuguese RMBS.

Business Editors

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Standard & Poor's

Jan. 16, 2003--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today that it assigned its preliminary credit ratings to the mortgage-backed floating-rate notes to be issued by Atlantes Mortgage No. 1 PLC, a special-purpose entity (see list below).

The collateral backing the notes consists of a pool of first-ranking, fully amortizing mortgage loans secured on residential properties located in Portugal, which were originated between August 1995 and December 2002.

The originator in the transaction is BANIF Banco Internacional do Funchal S.A. (Banif), a Portuguese bank established in 1988 incorporating the assets and liabilities of Caixa Economica do Funchal, which was founded in 1897. The main business activities of the bank include retail banking, corporate banking, investment banking, and international and offshore banking.

"This is the first RMBS transaction for Banif, demonstrating a positive start for the Portuguese ABS market," said Andrea Quirk, an associate in Standard & Poor's European Structured Finance Ratings group in London.

The ratings assigned to the class A, B, C, and D notes to be issued by Atlantes Mortgage No. 1 reflect:

-- Standard & Poor's analysis performed on the portfolio of assets transferred to Atlantes Mortgage No.1, a Portuguese securitization fund, representing a pool of first-ranking mortgage loans secured over residential properties located in Portugal;

-- The strong protection for noteholders provided by the levels of subordination, a cash reserve of 1% of the initial principal amount of the rated notes (funded at closing), a 3% liquidity facility with an additional 0.25% available during the first year, and excess spread (both the cash reserve and liquidity facility are nonamortizing for the life of the transaction);

-- The suitability of the servicer to fulfill its role in this transaction as confirmed by on-site reviews of its operations carried out by Standard & Poor's;

-- The credit quality of Credit Suisse First Boston International as swap counterparty and Deutsche Bank (Portugal) S.A., Madeira branch as liquidity facility provider; and

-- The sound payment structure and cash flow mechanics of the transaction. The full presale report for this transaction can be found on RatingsDirect, Standard & Poor's Web-based credit analysis system, at www.ratingsdirect.com. The presale can also be found on Standard & Poor's Web site at www.standardandpoors.com. Click "Fixed Income", then under "Browse by Sector" select "Structured Finance" and find the article under "Presale Credit Reports".


RATINGS LIST
Atlantes Mortgage No. 1 PLC
EUR500 Million Mortgage-Backed Floating-Rate Notes
Class        Rating       Amount (Mil. EUR)
A            AAA          462.5
B            A             22.5
C            BBB           12.5
D            BB             2.5
E            N.R.

N.R.--Not rated.

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Copyright 2003, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services