A Change of BRE Bank’s rating by Moody’s

The Management Board of BRE Bank SA herby informs that on April 29, 2013, Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) downgraded the long-term deposit rating of BRE Bank SA from 'Baa2' (outlook negative) to 'Baa3' (stable outlook) and the short-term rating from 'Prime-2' to 'Prime -3 '. The agency affirmed the Bank's financial strength rating (BFSR) at “D (ba2)' with a stable outlook.The long-term senior unsecured ratings of BRE Finance France S.A. , BRE's specialized bond issue vehicle on the international markets, were also adjusted accordingly from 'Baa2' to 'Baa3' with a stable outlook.Moody's rating action towards BRE Bank was driven by a downgrade of the level of parental support , following the change in Commerzbank’s rating on April 23, 2013. Commerzbank's long-term deposit rating was at that time downgraded from 'A3' to 'Baa1' and a baseline credit assessment (BCA) within Commerzbank’s BFSR of 'D+' was lowered from 'baa3' to 'ba1'. The latter action, in accordance with Moody’s methodology, translates into the long-term deposit rating of BRE Bank SA.The Management Board of BRE Bank SA expresses its strong disapproval of Moody's overall rating process towards BRE Bank, which for a number of years has ignored the significant improvement of a number of the Bank’s key financial indicators including record net profit levels for the fiscal years of 2011 and 2012. In particular, the Bank’s Core Tier I ratio, a measure of its capital strength has increased from 6.6% in March 2007, when Moody’s issued its previous revision of the Bank’s individual credit rating to 13.5% as of March 2013. At the same time, the Bank’s asset quality indicators have remained stable and consistently above market levels. The Bank has a diversified funding base supported by a strong domestic deposit franchise and issues of own bonds, including instruments within the EMTN Program and significantly surpasses all Basel 3 liquidity requirements several years in advance.The Management Board of BRE Bank SA considers Moody’s current rating of the Bank as unjustified and reflecting Moody’s inadequate understanding of the Bank and the overall Polish banking sector.