Mar. 19, 2010 (Business Wire) -- Fitch Ratings affirms the senior student loan notes of the Nelnet Student Loan Trust (Nelnet) 2008-1 notes, issued under the 2008 Trust Indenture, dated March 1, 2008. The Rating Outlook remains Stable. The trust has sufficient credit enhancement for the senior notes with senior parity at 104.2% as of Jan. 31, 2010 and increasing. A complete list of rating actions follows at the end of this release.
Fitch's Global Structured Finance Rating Criteria were used to review the ratings, and the affirmation is based on the performance of the trust in line with the expectation. The Outlook remains Stable because, with the buildup of parity for the senior notes, the ratings are expected to remain stable for the next two years. The subordinate student loan note will be reviewed separately upon the completion of the updated basis risk analysis.
The collateral supporting the Nelnet 2008-1 notes consists entirely of federally guaranteed student loans originated under the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). FFELP loans are guaranteed at least 97% of principal and accrued interest, depending on the loan origination date. The loans are serviced by Nelnet, Inc.
Fitch affirms the ratings with a Stable Outlook on the following senior classes of Nelnet's 2008-1 notes, issued under the 2008 Trust Indenture:
--Class 2008-1 A-1 at 'AAA/LS1'; Outlook Stable;
--Class 2008-1 A-2 at 'AAA/LS1'; Outlook Stable;
--Class 2008-1 A-3 at 'AAA/LS1'; Outlook Stable.
The following applicable criteria report is available on Fitch's web site at 'www.fitchratings.com':
--'Global Structured Finance Rating Criteria' (Sept. 30, 2009).
Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'.
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