FIRSTRAND BANK LIMITED - Amendment to The Credit Ratings of Firstrand Bank Limited

Amendment to The Credit Ratings of Firstrand Bank Limited

FIRSTRAND BANK LIMITED
(Incorporated in the Republic of South Africa)
(Registration number: 1929/001225/06)
Company code: BIFR1
(FRB or the bank)

AMENDMENT TO THE CREDIT RATINGS OF FIRSTRAND BANK LIMITED

Note holders are referred to the announcement issued by Standard & Poor’s
Ratings Services (S&P) on 9 December 2015, in which the agency revised the
outlook for six South African financial institutions, including FRB, to
negative from stable, following a similar rating action on the South
African sovereign. Furthermore, the long-term national scale ratings of
these financial institutions were also lowered.

S&P affirmed FRB’s issuer credit rating at ‘BBB-/A-3’, but lowered FRB’s
South African national scale long-term rating to zaAA- from zaAA. FRB’s
short-term national scale rating was affirmed at zaA-1.

These rating actions were driven by S&P’s revision to its outlook on the
South African sovereign rating, which was driven primarily by South
Africa’s slow economic growth, the risk of higher than expected inflation
and interest rates increasing household debt.

FRB confirms that these rating actions are linked to S&P’s assessment of
the South African economy and banking industry as a whole and is not a
reflection of any fundamental change in FRB's financial strength, earnings
resilience or credit quality.

Note holders are referred to S&P’s press release for any further
information.


Sandton
10 December 2015

Debt sponsor
RAND MERCHANT BANK (A division of FirstRand Bank Limited)

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