NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's CreditWire) May 18, 2000--Standard&Poor's today affirmed all its outstanding ratings on Banco Galicia y Buenos Aires S.A. (Banco Galicia) following its announcement of a proposed change in its corporate structure and share exchange (see list). The outlook remains stable. The group of controlling shareholders of Banco Galicia (the families Ayerza, Braun, and Escasany) have created Grupo Financiero Galicia S.A. (GFG) and transferred all their shares of the bank to this new company. GFG is also proposing a share exchange to all shareholders of Banco Galicia which, once all authorizations have been granted by the different regulatory bodies in both Argentina and the U.S. (CNV and SEC), will be open for 21 business days.
