Moody's on Jan. 18 affirmed the Baa2 long-term deposit and issuer ratings of CaixaBank SA and changed the outlook to stable from negative, in connection with its potential acquisition of Portugal's Banco BPI SA.

Moody's also affirmed the bank's baseline credit assessment and adjusted baseline credit assessment at "ba1" and its long-term counterparty risk assessment at Baa1(cr).

The change in outlook reflects Moody's view that CaixaBank's overall credit profile will be resilient following the deal completion, expected in the coming weeks. The rating agency highlighted reduced downside risks to BPI's creditworthiness following the remedial actions taken to avoid noncompliance with exposure limits, in relation to its exposure to Angola.