(The following statement was released by the rating agency) Fitch Ratings has withdrawn the expected rating of 'A(lka)(EXP)' assigned to Nations Trust Bank PLC's proposed senior unsecured debentures of up to LKR3bn as the bank no longer expects to proceed with the debt issue. The expected rating was assigned on 29 October 2014. Contacts: Primary Analyst Kanishka de Silva Analyst +94 1 1254 1900 Fitch Ratings Lanka Limited Level 15-04, East Tower, World Trade Center Colombo 01, Sri Lanka Secondary Analyst Jeewanthi Malagala, CFA Analyst +94 1 1254 1900 Committee Chairperson Jonathan Lee Senior Director  

Note to editors: Fitch's National ratings provide a relative measure of creditworthiness for rated entities in countries with relatively low international sovereign ratings and where there is demand for such ratings. The best risk within a country is rated 'AAA' and other credits are rated only relative to this risk. National ratings are designed for use mainly by local investors in local markets and are signified by the addition of an identifier for the country concerned, such as 'AAA(lka)' for National ratings in Sri Lanka.

Specific letter grades are not therefore internationally comparable. Additional information is available at www.fitchratings.com. Applicable criteria, "Global Financial Institutions Rating Criteria", dated 31 January 2014, "National Scale Ratings Criteria", dated 30 October 2013, "Assessing and Rating Bank Subordinated and Hybrid Securities" dated 31 January 2014, and "Evaluating Corporate Governance", dated 12 December 2012 are available at www.fitchratings.com. Applicable Criteria and Related Research: Global Financial Institutions Rating Criteria here National Scale Ratings Criteria here Assessing and Rating Bank Subordinated and Hybrid Securities Criteria here Evaluating Corporate Governance here Additional Disclosure Solicitation Status here ALL FITCH CREDIT RATINGS ARE SUBJECT TO CERTAIN LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMERS. PLEASE READ THESE LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMERS BY FOLLOWING THIS LINK: here. IN ADDITION, RATING DEFINITIONS AND THE TERMS OF USE OF SUCH RATINGS ARE AVAILABLE ON THE AGENCY'S PUBLIC WEBSITE 'WWW.FITCHRATINGS.COM'. PUBLISHED RATINGS, CRITERIA AND METHODOLOGIES ARE AVAILABLE FROM THIS SITE AT ALL TIMES. FITCH'S CODE OF CONDUCT, CONFIDENTIALITY, CONFLICTS OF INTEREST, AFFILIATE FIREWALL, COMPLIANCE AND OTHER RELEVANT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ARE ALSO AVAILABLE FROM THE 'CODE OF CONDUCT' SECTION OF THIS SITE. FITCH MAY HAVE PROVIDED ANOTHER PERMISSIBLE SERVICE TO THE RATED ENTITY OR ITS RELATED THIRD PARTIES. DETAILS OF THIS SERVICE FOR RATINGS FOR WHICH THE LEAD ANALYST IS BASED IN AN EU-REGISTERED ENTITY CAN BE FOUND ON THE ENTITY SUMMARY PAGE FOR THIS ISSUER ON THE FITCH WEBSITE.