Moody's rates Citic Ka Wah Bank note Baa3

Moody's Investors Service said it assigned a Baa3 rating to Hong Kong-based Citic Ka Wah Bank's proposed issuance of dollar-denominated subordinated notes that qualify as tier II supplementary capital under the Banking Ordinance of Hong Kong.

The outlook is stable.

The notes also represent unsecured, subordinated obligations of the bank (rated Baa2/Prime-3/D+) and as such, their Baa3 rating is one notch below the bank's Baa2 senior obligations rating. The notes are due in 2011 and become callable one year after their issuance at a discount with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's approval.

The ratings reflect the bank's adequate capital and liquidity levels, which are offset by its small franchise and below-average core profitability and asset quality, Moody's said.

Its deposit ratings have factored in moderate support from its majority owner, the Citic Group (Baa2/Prime-3/D, with negative outlook), which is in turn directly controlled by China's State Council, the agency said.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.