On May 4, 2009, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services revised its outlook on Greece-based National Bank of Greece S.A. (NBG) to negative from stable. At the same time, we affirmed the 'BBB+/A-2' long- and short-term counterparty credit ratings on NBG. We also lowered our ratings on NBG's hybrid capital securities (preferred stock) to 'BB-' from 'BB'. The outlook revision follows our review of our ratings on Greek and Cypriot banks in light of our expectations for a significantly more negative economic environment than previously. Because of the sharper-than-expected downturn, we expect NBG's asset quality and returns to come under greater pressure. Given our expectations for increased strain on NBG's profitability, the downgrade of the preferred stock reflects our opinion of
