Standard&Poor's revised its outlook on Switzerland-based Banque Cantonale Vaudoise to negative from stable on June 25, 2002. The outlook revision was based on Standard&Poor's opinion that, although BCV's earnings stream reflects a comparatively high degree of diversification, the deterioration in operating performance in 2001 could signal a trend in which overall performance is negatively affected, particularly by the more volatile, market-sensitive elements of the bank's earnings. At the same time, Standard&Poor's affirmed its single-'A'-minus long-term and A-2 short-term counterparty credit ratings on the bank. The ratings on BCV reflect Standard&Poor's belief that the bank's asset quality will be markedly improved subsequent to the accelerated provisioning effort undertaken at year-end 2001. As this
