...HONG KONG (S&P Global Ratings) Sept. 20, 2018--S&P Global Ratings today said that Beijing Infrastructure Investment Co. Ltd.'s (BII)'s purchase of an 8.5% stake in Huaxia Bank Co. Ltd. will not dilute its core focus on metro investment and operation. We continue to assess an almost certain likelihood of timely and sufficient support from the Beijing municipal government to BII should the company come under financial distress. As such, our 'A+' long-term issuer rating on BII is unaffected. We believe BII's participation in Huaxia Bank's share placement is supported by the Beijing government to increase the municipality's influence over financial institutions. The Beijing-based commercial bank is under direct supervision of the Beijing State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. BII is the sole metro investment and operation platform of the Beijing municipal government. In recent years it has been expanding into ancillary businesses, including financial services. However,...
