In an announcement released by Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) on December 18, 2008 Moody's assigned backed ratings of "Aaa" to certain senior debt securities of the rated Danish banks reflecting the unconditional and irrevocable guarantee that has been put in place by the Aaa-rated Kingdom of Denmark. The guarantee scheme covers deposits and senior unsecured debt of the participating Danish banks, both existing and new instruments, for a two-year period that expires on 30 September 2010. The outlook on the backed Aaa ratings is stable in line with that on the rating of Denmark.