Fitch cuts Greek banks to RD

Fitch Ratings said it downgraded Greece-based National Bank of Greece SA, Piraeus Bank, SA, Eurobank Ergasias SA and Alpha Bank AE's long- and short-term issuer default ratings to RD from CCC and C, respectively.

The agency also lowered the banks' viability ratings to f from ccc.

Fitch said the downgrades follow the announcement by the Greek authorities on June 28 to impose extended bank holidays and capital controls, mainly including restrictions on deposit withdrawals in Greece, which the agency views as a restricted default, because the deposit restrictions affect a material part of the banks' senior obligations.

The banks' senior unsecured long-term debt ratings were downgraded to C/RR6 from CCC/RR4. The ratings reflect exceptionally high levels of credit risk, because of the imposition of capital controls as well as poor recovery prospects in the event of the default on senior debt obligations, due to very weak asset quality and high levels of preferred liabilities and asset encumbrance.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.