Comments to Standard & Poor's rating of Vasakronan

Comments to Standard & Poor's rating of Vasakronan Vasakronan has chosen to secure a rating independent of the ownership link to the Swedish State. The rating is based entirely on Vasakronan's financial position. Vasakronan has received a credit rating of BBB+ from Standard & Poor's for long-term borrowing. Short-term borrowing received the highest domestic rating, K1. Standard & Poor's has now conducted a renewed assessment and Vasakronan retains its rating with the addition "negative outlook." The background is a review of all credit-rated European real estate companies. The appraisal is based on the strong improvement in the business climate in the real estate industry in recent years. The market trend in recent months has further accelerated. As a consequence, Standard & Poor's is urging caution in assessing the European real estate companies. Standard & Poor's assessment of the lowest limit for a cash-flow-based interest coverage ratio in most recent years has been a multiple of 2. This limit is now being increased to about 3. This means that a real estate company, in addition to having a solid equity ratio exceeding 35 percent, must also strive for a cash-flow-based interest coverage multiple of about 3. "We believe that the financial risk exposure within Vasakronan remains low," says Håkan Bryngelson, President of Vasakronan. "We consider it essential for Vasakronan to develop a market-leading position and to continue to pursue a growth strategy. This requires a high rate of investment." FINANCIAL FACTS The market value of Vasakronan's properties at December 31, 1999, was SEK 27.2 billion. The surplus value in the property portfolio was SEK 8 billion and the adjusted equity/assets ratio was 47 percent. Concurrently, the visible equity ratio was 38 percent. As of September 30, 2000, Vasakronan had a visible equity/assets ratio of 36 percent and an interest coverage multiple of 2.3, which is fully in accordance with the company's financial strategy. For further information, please contact: Håkan Bryngelson, President+46 8 783 21 05 Björn Lindström, Chief Financial Officer + 46 8 783 21 12 Bengt Möller, Senior Vice President, Corp Communications +46 8 783 21 19 ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by BIT http://www.bit.se The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/11/13/20001113BIT00450/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/11/13/20001113BIT00450/bit0002.pdf