On March 31, 2016, Standard&Poor's revised the outlook on the sovereign credit rating on China to negative from stable. We are similarly revising the outlook on China-based BoCom and its subsidiary Bocomfl to negative from stable because we see potentially reduced room for a rating uplift based on extraordinary government support. The rating on BoCom currently incorporates an uplift to reflect our view that the government of China has a high likelihood of providing extraordinary support in the event of the bank's financial distress. In line with the outlook revision, we are lowering our long-term Greater China regional scale on BoCom and Bocomfl to 'cnAA-' from 'cnAA'. We are also affirming our 'A-/A-2' issuer credit ratings and the
