BDNI gets long-term rating of BB-plus

BDNI gets long-term rating of BB-plus

LONDON (Reuter): IBCA, Europe's international credit rating
agency, yesterday assigned an Individual rating of C, a Long-term
rating of BB+ and a Short-term rating of B to Bank Dagang
Nasional Indonesia (BDNI).

The rating agency said that BDNI, Indonesia's eleventh largest
bank and fourth largest private commercial bank, with a 4 percent
market share, has a solid middle market banking franchise and is
also active in credit cards, treasury services and capital
markets activities.

"The bank's ratings reflect this, along with its favorable
operating performance trends and above average asset quality over
the past few years." the agency said.

Following the completion of a rights issue in the first
quarter of 1997, the bank appeared to be well capitalized, with
a CAR ratio (BIS - total capital equivalent) of 12.2 percent, it
said

Although the recent regional currency crisis poses a modest
degree of risk to asset quality, BDNI is a conservatively managed
bank with good performance, adequate capitalization, and
favorable long-term prospects.

The Long-term rating is partly influenced by sovereign
factors. Indonesia has a very good record of economic management
over the past decade but the effects of recent currency
volatility may have a detrimental impact on the Indonesian
economy and the full impact to the banking sector cannot yet be
determined.