Ratings agency Standard & Poor?s said yesterday that it does not expect any change to the ratings for Brascan Corporation and Brascan Financial Corporation after news that the two companies plan to merge.

A company wholly-owned by Brascan Corporation, Trilon International Corporation, holds a 90 percent stake in Bermuda-based finite risk re/insurer Imagine.S&P?s ratings for Brascan Corp. are A-/Stable/A-2 while Brascan Financial Corp.?s ratings are BBB+/Stable/A-2.

The stable outlook indicates that the ratings are unlikely to change. S&P said that Brascan?s amalgamation, which is reportedly being undertaken to reduce administrative costs and simplify operationsfor Brascan, is subject to obtaining consent from Brascan Financial?s preferred shareholders. The amalgamation will modestly increase the amount of debt directly held by Brascan but the ratings agency said debt at Brascan, as a ratio to its estimated portfolio value, is expected to remain within the 20 to 25 percent range. S&P said it viewed the debt ratio as being in line with its rating under its operating holding company methodology.