On June 9, 2015, we lowered the long- and short-term counterparty credit ratings on BHW Bausparkasse AG Hameln's ultimate parent, Deutsche Bank AG, to 'BBB+/A-2' following our review of the prospect of extraordinary government support for German banks. Separately, Deutsche Bank announced on April 27, 2015, that it plans to deconsolidate BHW's intermediate parent, Deutsche Postbank AG, by year-end 2016. We currently consider BHW to be strategically important to Deutsche Postbank, which allows for continued group support uplift from BHW's stand-alone credit profile. We are lowering the long-term counterparty rating on BHW to 'BBB' from 'A-', and removing the rating from CreditWatch with negative implications, where it was placed on Feb. 3, 2015. We are affirming the 'A-2' short-term rating.
