China Merchants Bank Ratings Affirmed; Outlook Remains Stable

Capital Intelligence Ratings (CI Ratings or CI) today announced that it has affirmed the Long-Term Foreign Currency Rating (LT FCR) and Short-Term Foreign Currency Rating (ST FCR) of China Merchants Bank (CMB or the Bank) at ‘BBB+’ and ‘A2’, respectively. At the same time, CI Ratings has affirmed CMB’s Bank Standalone Rating (BSR) of ‘bbb-’, Core Financial Strength (CFS) rating of ‘bbb-’ and Extraordinary Support Level (ESL) of High. The Outlook for the LT FCR and BSR remains Stable.

Benefitting from the ESL of High, the Bank’s LT FCR is set two notches above the BSR. The ESL takes into account CMB’s D-SIB status and sizeable indirect government ownership. The Chinese government has a strong track record of extending assistance to troubled banks and has ample resources and policy flexibility to support the banking sector as a whole.

CMB’s BSR is derived from a CFS rating of ‘bbb-’ and an Operating Environment Risk Anchor (OPERA) of ‘bbb-’, the…