LONDON (Standard&Poor's) Nov. 22, 2005—Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it assigned its preliminary credit rating to the €14 billion global covered bond program set up by Nationwide Building Society (see list below). This is the first global covered bond program to be set up by Nationwide Building Society (Nationwide) and has a program limit of €14 billion. No series has been issued to date. No legislative framework for covered bonds exists in the U.K., but for the purpose of this program, Nationwide has reproduced all the major characteristics of covered bonds using existing U.K. law. The rating reflects the terms of the issuance, structure, cash flow mechanics of the program, and Standard&Poor's cash
