The ratings on NIBC Bank reflect above all its strong capital base, cautious management, niche position in Benelux corporate banking, and track record of volatile profitability. The bank's wholesale funding reliance is somewhat mitigated by its conservative liquidity management. Thanks to good deposit collection (more than €3 billion as of June 2009) and the large amount of guaranteed debt the bank has raised (€4.4 billion as of end-August 2009), we now see NIBC as having moderate systemic importance, from low previously, in The Netherlands (AAA/Stable/A-1+), which we classify as a supportive country under our methodology. We do not give the ratings on NIBC any uplift above its stand-alone credit profile for potential external institution-specific support. Owing to its cautious management,
