Public policy role in facilitating the workout of the former WestLB AG's nonstrategic and nonperforming assets. Link to the German State of North Rhine-Westphalia because of the ownership structure and state support mechanism. Business limits as a nonbank workout entity. No internal capital generation capacity and depletion of the existing capital base to a low level due to loss accumulation. Reliance on government support to close capital, funding, and liquidity gaps in case of need. Standard&Poor's Ratings Services' outlook on Erste Abwicklungsanstalt (EAA) is stable because we don't expect the ownership structure or strong commitment of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW; AA-/Stable/A-1+) to the entity to change in the foreseeable future. The stable outlook on EAA mirrors
