Fitch affirms Bank of NZ’s long-term ratings at A+

Fitch Ratings affirmed Bank of New Zealand’s (BNZ) credit ratings, including its Long-Term Foreign- and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs), at ‘A+’ and Short-Term IDRs at ‘F1’.

It also revised the bank’s Shareholder Support Rating (SSR) at ‘a+’, and Viability Rating (VR) at ‘a’.  The outlook on the Long-Term IDRs is stable, as per a report by Fitch Ratings on Thursday.

The ratings reflect the strong likelihood of support from BNZ’s owner, National Australia Bank Limited (NAB, AA-/Stable/a+).

The ratings are anchored to NAB’s Viability Rating, with uncertainties around the availability of junior debt buffers to support BNZ’s senior creditors.

Attribution: Fitch Ratings report

Subediting: M. S. Salama