Fitch upgrades Emigrant to BB-

Fitch Ratings said it upgraded the long-term issuer default rating for Emigrant Bancorp, Inc. to BB- from B+.

The short-term issuer default rating was affirmed at B.

The outlook is stable.

Fitch said the upgrade reflects Emigrant's maintenance of strong capital levels since the company sold its branches late last year. The divestitures resulted in a sizeable gain, and augmented capital ratios by roughly 477 basis points.

The upgrade also reflects a lower risk profile given reduced exposure to private equity and hedge funds, as a result of regulatory limits on these investments by the Volcker Rule, the agency said. Fitch views reductions of private equity and hedge fund investments favorably since equity investments are less liquid and returns are more volatile.

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