The ratings on Capital One Financial Corp. are based on the Falls Church, Va.-based company's performance as an independent entity since its 1994 spin-off from the credit card division of Signet Banking Corp. The ratings also reflect the risks inherent in the significant dependence on a single business line, heavy reliance on wholesale-sourced funding, and the difficult operating environment in which Capital One currently finds itself. In response to the intense competitive pressures in the industry and market saturation, Capital One has followed an opportunistic strategy based on nimble focus on various subsegments of the credit card customer spectrum. As a result, Capital One invests heavily in research and development of new products and in building a now sizable database,
