FRANKFURT (Standard&Poor's) April 6, 2009--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it had lowered its long-term counterparty credit rating on Hungary-based Magyar Takarékszövetkezeti Bank Rt. (Takarekbank; Bank of Hungarian Savings Cooperatives Co. Ltd.) to 'BB' from 'BB+'. The 'B' short-term counterparty credit rating was affirmed. The outlook is negative. "The downgrade reflects our concerns about accelerating economic contraction and industry risk in the Republic of Hungary," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Harm Semder. This rating action follows our recent downgrade of Hungary to BBB-/Negative/A-3 from BBB/Negative/A-3. Our current ratings take into account the possibility of a 6% decline in the Hungarian economy in 2009, which increases the likelihood of severe repercussions on Takarekbank's financial profile, and
