Fitch Ratings has assigned
The Outlook is Stable.
This issuance brings WBC's total outstanding covered bonds to AUD32.9 billion. The floating-rate bond is due in
KEY RATING DRIVERS
The '
The covered bonds are rated four notches above the bank's IDR, at the highest end of the rating scale. This is out of a maximum achievable uplift of seven notches, consisting of a resolution uplift of zero notches, a payment continuity uplift of six notches and a recovery uplift of one notch. Fitch's analysis relies on the programme's committed AP of 93.4% used in the programme's asset coverage test, which provides more protection than Fitch's breakeven AP of 96.5%.
The Stable Outlook on the rating reflects the three-notch buffer against a downgrade of the issuer's IDR.
RATING SENSITIVITIES
Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive rating action/upgrade:
The rating on the covered bonds is '
Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative rating action/downgrade:
WBC's '
There is no rating impact on the bonds from the relied-upon AP in the programme equaling the maximum 95.0% contractual AP stipulated in the programme documents, as it supports a greater level of overcollateralisation than Fitch's '
Fitch's '
Best/Worst Case Rating Scenario
International scale credit ratings of Financial Institutions and Covered Bond issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario (defined as the 99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a positive direction) of three notches over a three-year rating horizon; and a worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the 99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative direction) of four notches over three years. The complete span of best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating categories ranges from '
Date of Relevant Committee
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
The issuer has informed Fitch that not all relevant underlying information used in the analysis of the rated bonds is public.
REFERENCES FOR SUBSTANTIALLY MATERIAL SOURCE CITED AS KEY DRIVER OF RATING
The principal sources of information used in the analysis are described in the Applicable Criteria.
PUBLIC RATINGS WITH CREDIT LINKAGE TO OTHER RATINGS
The covered bond rating is driven by the credit risk of the issuing financial institution, as measured by its Long-Term Foreign-Currency IDR.
ESG Considerations
Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means ESG issues are credit-neutral or have only a minimal credit impact on the entity, either due to their nature or the way in which they are being managed by the entity. For more information on Fitch's ESG Relevance Scores, visit www.fitchratings.com/esg
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