Fitch rates Bank of China notes A

Fitch Ratings said it assigned an expected A rating to Bank of China Ltd. Macau branch's proposed long-term senior unsecured notes to be issued under its medium-term note program.

The notes will be denominated in Chinese yuan with fixed rates, the agency noted.

The proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes.

The bank's Macau branch is part of the same legal entity as Bank of China, Fitch explained, so notes issued under the program represent the bank's direct, unconditional, unsecured and unsubordinated obligations and are rated in line with its long-term issuer default rating of A.

The ratings are underpinned by the expectations of an extremely high probability of support from the Chinese sovereign in the event of stress, the agency said.

Any change to the rating will be correlated directly with changes in the bank's issuer default rating, which will reflect any shift in the perceived willingness or ability of the government to support the bank in a full and timely manner, Fitch said.

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