The ratings on Fifth Third Bancorp (Fifth Third) reflect the company's strong profitability, healthy credit quality, and adequate funding and liquidity profiles. After a solid track record of superior financial results for more than a decade, Fifth Third's financial performance has been slipping recently. Moreover, Fifth Third has increased balance-sheet leverage, and the company's once wide capital advantage versus peers has disappeared, but capital levels remain appropriate for its rating category. Fifth Third's deeply-rooted, decentralized business model with local management accountability and high inside stock ownership has been a key success factor and has promoted outstanding financial performance over time. Still, the appropriateness of a decentralized management structure based on banking affiliates for a company of Fifth Third's growing size
