Research Update: BOC 'A/A-1' Ratings Affirmed On Very Strong Business Position And Strengthened Government Support; Outlook Stable

The BOC's policy role is receding more slowly than we previously expected, and we now anticipate the bank will play a critical role to the Chinese government in the foreseeable future. In our view, BOC will also demonstrate superior business stability and resilience, as shown during China's recent regulatory tightening. We have lifted our assessment of the bank's stand-alone credit profile (SACP) to 'a-' from 'bbb+'. We affirmed our 'A/A-1' issuer credit ratings on BOC. At the same time, we raised the rating on BOC's preference shares to 'BB+ 'from 'BB'. We affirmed other issue-level ratings on the bank's debt. The stable outlook reflects the sovereign rating, and our expectation on the bank to maintain its leading market position, current

...+ The BOC's policy role is receding more slowly than we previously expected, and we now anticipate the bank will play a critical role to the Chinese government in the foreseeable future. + In our view, BOC will also demonstrate superior business stability and resilience, as shown during China's recent regulatory tightening. We have lifted our assessment of the bank's stand-alone credit profile (SACP) to 'a-' from '###+'. + We affirmed our 'A/A-1' issuer credit ratings on BOC. At the same time, we raised the rating on BOC's preference shares to '##+ 'from '##'. We affirmed other issue-level ratings on the bank's debt. + The stable outlook reflects the sovereign rating, and our expectation on the bank to maintain its leading market position, current capitalization level, and strong funding and liquidity profile the next 24 months. We also expect BOC has an extremely high likelihood of receiving extraordinary government support as needed....

Research Update