Moody's rates Banco Itau Argentina notes Ba1

Moody's Investors Service said it upgraded Banco Itau Argentina's national scale local-currency deposit rating to Aaa.ar from Aa1.ar and affirmed the national scale foreign-currency deposit rating of Ba1.ar.

The agency also said it assigned Aaa.ar and Aa3.ar national scale local- and foreign-currency debt ratings to the bank's multi-currency senior debt program in the amount of $250 million, along with a national scale local-currency debt rating of Aaa.ar to the expected first issuance of the program, in an amount up to $100 million in Argentine pesos. A provisional Ba1 global local-currency debt rating also was assigned to the expected first issuance.

Moody's also said it affirmed the bank's global local-currency senior unsecured debt rating of provisional Ba1 and global foreign-currency senior unsecured debt rating of provisional B2.

The outlook for all ratings is stable.

The upgrade brings the bank's national scale rating in line with those of other Argentine banks with Ba1 rating, Moody's said.

The ratings reflect the bank's good capitalization and liquidity, as well as its conservative risk management policies, despite its poor financial performance in 2010, the agency said.

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