Bendigo and Adelaide Bank’s BBB+ credit rating from Fitch Ratings has been upgraded from stable to positive, suggesting the bank may soon be upgraded to A-.
If the second tier lender was upgraded to A- it would be able to access wholesale money at cheaper rates and close its competitive disadvantage against the major banks.
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Fitch said the bank had managed to withstand the pressures of the global financial crisis well, with profitability recovering in the first half of the 2010 financial year.
“Around 98 per cent of the lenders portfolio is secured,” Fitch said.
“Furthermore, its exposure to higher risk commercial lending is low relative to larger Australian banks, and is reflected in asset quality ratios.”