OREANDA-NEWS. Fitch Ratings has today assigned Russia's Bank Saint Petersburg ("BSP") ratings of Issuer Default 'B', Short-term 'B', Individual 'D' and Support '5'. The Outlook for the Issuer Default rating ("IDR") is Stable.

The ratings reflect BSP's large exposure to the real estate and construction sectors and high individual borrower concentrations, which may lead to losses and liquidity constraints in the event of an economic downturn or any serious price correction in the real estate market.

Stronger capitalization would be required to absorb any such shock. At the same time, the ratings also consider BSP's sound earnings performance underpinned by a solid net interest margin, good local brand recognition, significant regional franchise, low levels of loan impairment to date and acceptable loan loss reserves.