PARIS (Standard&Poor's) March 11, 2009--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it decided to maintain on CreditWatch with positive implications the 'A' long-term and 'A-1' short-term counterparty credit ratings on Fortis Bank SA/NV (FBB) and on core subsidiary BGL S.A. (formerly Fortis Bank Luxembourg S.A.), where they originally had been placed on Oct. 6, 2008. Our CreditWatch update on FBB reflects our view of the increased likelihood of FBB being acquired by BNP Paribas (AA/Negative/A-1+), following the recent announcement that the Belgian state, BNP Paribas, and Fortis Holding (Fortis; FBB's previous shareholder) have signed a new agreement amending the protocol signed on Oct. 10, 2008. This term sheet modifies the terms of BNP Paribas' acquisition of Fortis'
