On Nov. 13, 2008, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'BBB/A-3' counterparty credit rating on Banco Bradesco S.A. (Bradesco) The outlook is stable. The rating on Bradesco incorporates the bank's significant market share in Brazil even after the recently announced merge of Itaú and Unibanco, and its strong franchise as one of the most diversified retail banks in Latin America. The rating also incorporates the bank's consistent earnings power with increasing cross selling and its good liquidity. These positives are partially mitigated by the bank's exposure to the country's economic and industry risk, including the challenge to control credit risk in a more challenging environment for the banking industry, which should pressure margins due to higher funding costs and
