MOSCOW, October 18 (RIA Novosti) - International rating agency Fitch Ratings announced Tuesday that it had assigned Ak Bars Finance S.A.'s $175 million issue of limited recourse loan participation notes a final Long-term B+ rating.
The notes, maturing in October 2008, are to be used solely for financing a loan to Russia's Ak Bars Bank, which has a long-term rating of B+ with a stable outlook, the agency said.
Ak Bars Finance S.A., a Luxembourg-based special purpose vehicle (SPV), will only pay noteholders principal and interest received from Ak Bars.
Ak Bars was founded by the government of Republic of Tatarstan in 1993. It is the largest bank in the region by assets, and one of the 20 largest Russian banks. The government holds around 93% of the bank's voting shares through ministries, government agencies, and related companies.
