Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'AA-/A-1+' counterparty credit ratings on The Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBSG). The outlook is stable. The ratings action follows RBSG's announcement on May 5, 2004, that it intends to acquire Ohio-based Charter One Financial Inc. (NYSE: CF; BBB+/WatchPositive/A-2) for a consideration of $10.5 billion (about £5.8 billion), through its U.S. subsidiary Citizens Financial Group Inc. (CFG; NR). CFG is the parent of the Citizens Banks of Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. The proposed acquisition fits RBSG's stated U.S. strategy, and will strengthen the overall business position and geographic diversification within the U.S. On completion of the acquisition, the U.S. operations will account for about 25% of RBSG Group's pretax profits. This
