S&P Asgns Prelim Rtgs in Porsche's Austrian

    LONDON--Oct. 29, 2001--Preliminary ratings were today assigned in the German auto leases and leasing securitization originated by Porsche Bank AG (see list below).
    "The transaction is the first publicly rated Austrian auto loan and leasing securitization," said Torsten Althaus, a director at Standard & Poor's Structured Finance Ratings group in Frankfurt. "This may well set a trend in this market going forward."
    The ratings assigned to the floating-rate notes to be issued by special-purpose entity FACT-2001 Ltd. reflect an analysis of the servicer's ability to fulfill its role in the transaction, the sound legal and payment structures, and the sound cash flow mechanics of the transaction.
    Other important considerations include:

    -- Strong protection for class A noteholders provided by the subordinated class B notes (4% of the notes issued) and the cash collateral account (2.18% of notes issued);
    -- Strong protection for class B noteholders provided by the cash collateral account;
    -- The protection provided by excess spread; and -- The interest-rate swaps mechanism to hedge the interest-rate risk associated with the transaction.

    A copy of Standard & Poor's complete presale report for this transaction is available on RatingsDirect, Standard & Poor's Web-based credit analysis system, at www.ratingsdirect.com. The report is also available on Standard & Poor's Ratings Services Web site at www.standardandpoors.com. Under Presale Reports, select Structured Finance, then Asset-Backed Securities.
    --CreditWire

PRELIMINARY RATINGS ASSIGNED
FACT-2001 Ltd.
EUR400 Million Asset-Backed Floating-Rate Notes
Class        Rating       Amount (Mil. EUR)
A            AAA          384
B            A             16