Standard&Poor's bases its ratings on Aozora Bank Ltd. on its "moderate" business position, "adequate" capital and earnings, "adequate" risk position, "average" funding, and "adequate" liquidity. The ratings also reflect our assessment that there is a "moderately high" likelihood that the bank will receive extraordinary government support in a time of need. The bank's SACP is 'bbb+'. Our bank criteria use our Banking Industry Country Risk Assessment (BICRA) economic risk and industry risk scores to determine a bank's anchor SACP, the starting point in assigning an issuer credit rating (ICR). Our anchor SACP for a bank operating only in Japan is 'a-'. The BICRA score is informed by our evaluation of economic risk. We view Japan as a developed
