Moody’s assigns A1 long-term deposit rating to BCV

In an announcement made today, rating agency Moody’s released its first-ever assessment of BCV, assigning ratings of A1 for long-term deposits and Prime-1 for short-term deposits. The outlook on both ratings is stable.

Lausanne, Switzerland, 25 July 2007 – The A1 and Prime-1 ratings reflect BCV’s improving financials and its strong franchise and market share in Vaud, Switzerland, the Bank’s home region. Another contributing factor in the ratings decision is BCV’s status as a cantonal bank and the size of the stake held by the majority shareholder, the Canton of Vaud.

Like other banks in Switzerland, BCV is now rated by two major agencies, Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s. S&P, which first assigned a rating to BCV in 2001, reiterated its “A, stable” (long-term) and “A-1” (short-term) ratings on 19 April 2007.

This latest rating announcement is yet another sign of BCV’s successful financial turnaround in recent years. The full Moody’s press release can be consulted on its website (www.moodys.com).

Contact(s)

Christian Jacot-Descombes, Press Officer
Phone + 41 21 212 28 61
E-mail

Wilhelm Blaeuer, Investor relations
Phone + 41 21 212 20 71
E-mail

This press release is being issued outside the trading hours of the SIX, Swiss Exchange in order to comply with the principles of ad hoc disclosure pursuant to the SIX listing rules.