Aug 23 (REUTERS) – Standard & Poor’s lowered its outlook on HSBC Holdings PLC to negative from stable on Thursday, saying that money-laundering allegations against the British bank have left HSBC vulnerable to losing business and facing costs related to regulatory fines and litigation. S&P also reaffirmed HSBC’s long-term counterparty credit rating of A+, which is six notches... 

Moody’s took the first step toward stripping Germany of its coveted AAA credit rating on Monday, cutting the outlook for Europe’s largest and most pivotal economy to “negative.” Delivering a stark warning that no one is immune from the eurozone’s rolling crisis, the ratings agency lowered Germany’s credit outlook from “stable” to “negative.” A... 

When Vietnam officially joined WTO in 2007, foreign investors believed that Vietnam would become one of the most attractive investment destinations. However, Vietnam’s IDR (issuer default rating) still has not been significantly improved over the last five years. Credit rating still low Vietnam’s IDR is now at “B+” as assessed by Fitch Ratings, which means “relatively high risk”. At “B+”,... 

Standard Chartered Bank has been appointed the sovereign credit ratings advisor to the Vietnamese government, working directly with the Ministry of Finance (MoF). Vietnam currently maintains credit ratings from Standard & Poor’s (a division of the McGraw-Hill Companies), Moody’s, and Fitch Ratings. Vietnam’s sovereign credit rating is an important indicator for international investors... 

Major international credit rating agencies Standard&Poor’s and Moody’s announced credit ratings for HCM City-based Sacombank for the first time last Friday. S&P assigned Sacombank a ‘B+’ long-term rating and ‘B’ short-term counterparty credit rating. The outlook on the long-term rating was stable, reflecting S&P’s view that Sacombank would maintain its... 

The central bank’s bank inspection and supervision agency will issue credit ratings for local credit institutions and foreign bank branches in a bid to ensure transparency in banking sector operations. The rating results will be publicized to create a foundation to determine credit growth quotas on the basis that banks with high operational efficiency will be assigned with higher credit growth targets... 

The well-known global credit rating firm Moody’s has assessed equitization plan of the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) as credit positive. In its weekly Global Credit Research, Moody’s commented that equitization will help BIDV improve its capital base and adequacy, bring positive structure changes as well as enhance its financial and management transparency. Besides, the... 

Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s on Tuesday said it had downgraded the ratings of major US banks, including Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America. The firm said it had revisited ratings on 37 of the world’s largest banks, part of a process of “applying its new ratings criteria for banks.” S&P announced revised criteria... 

Europe is reeling from warnings it faces a “deep depression” if the eurozone collapses and that every EU nation’s credit rating could be hit without firm action to resolve the debt crisis. An updated growth report from the OECD on Monday said the crisis was now just one step away from plunging advanced economies into an abyss of recession and could trigger waves of bankruptcies. And... 

US rating agency Moody’s warned Monday that all European Union sovereign ratings were threatened by the current financial crisis. “The continued rapid escalation of the euro area sovereign and banking credit crisis is threatening the credit standing of all European sovereigns,” the agency said in a new special comment. Moody’s said that “in the absence of policy measures...