Standard & Poor`s downgrades 5 Spainish Banks
Baku, May 26 (AZERTAC). Standard & Poor`s on Friday lowered the credit rating of five Spanish banks in a move that follows the agency`s downgrade of Spain last month.
The affected banks are Banco Popular, Bankinter, Banca Civica and Bankia along with its parent Banco Financiero y de Ahorro (BFA), the ratings agency said in a statement.
"The rating actions follow our review of the wider implications for economic and industry risks in the Spanish banking sector after our two-notch downgrade of the Kingdom of Spain," the statement said.
Standard & Poor`s downgraded Spain`s sovereign debt rating to BBB-plus and added a negative outlook on April 26, saying it expects the Spanish economy to shrink both this year and next.
The agency lowered its rating for Spain`s fourth-largest bank Bankia, which was partially nationalised earlier this month, to BB+ from BBB- and lowered its rating for BFA to B+ from BB-.
Standard & Poor`s cut its rating for Banco Popular and Bankinter to BB+ from BBB- and reduced its rating for Banca Civica to BB from BB+.
Spanish bank Bankia said Friday it had revised its results for 2011, posting a loss of nearly three billion euros instead of the 309 million euro net profit announced in February.
Spain`s fourth-largest bank unveiled its revised results for last year after it announced it would ask the Spanish government for 19 billion euros ($24 billion), the biggest-ever bailout to a Spanish lender.
"The write-downs made in the loan portfolio and foreclosed assets... have produced negative results in 2011 of 2.979 billion euros," it said in a statement.
Formed in 2010 from a merger of seven savings banks, Bankia had problematic property assets amounting to 31.8 billion euros at the end of last year, according to Bank of Spain figures.
The bank, which holds some 10 per cent of the country`s bank deposits, was partially nationalised this month as Madrid tried to save it from its vast exposure to the troubled property sector.
The state took a controlling 45-per cent stake by converting a loan of 4.465 billion euros to its parent group BFA into equity.
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