The ratings were affirmed due to the potential support from parent banks Erste Group, Societe Generale and Turkiye Garanti Bankasi.
“As a strategically important subsidiary of Erste, Fitch would normally notch BCR’s IDR one notch below that of its parent, implying an IDR for BCR of ‘A-‘/Negative. However, BCR’s rating is constrained by the Romanian Country Ceiling of ‘BBB+’,” Fitch notes.
The negative outlook on BCR’s long-term IDR takes into consideration Fitch’s statement that it is likely to downgrade Erste’s IDR to the level of its VR (currently bbb+) by the end of the first half of 2015, when its support rating and support rating floor will likely be downgraded to ‘5’ and revised to ‘No Floor’.
For BRD, the IDRs and support rating are based on Fitch’s view that there would be a high likelihood of support from its majority shareholder, Societe Generale.
As for Garanti Bank, the IDRs and support rating are underpinned by Fitch’s view that the bank is a strategically important subsidiary of Turkiye Garanti Bankasi.