Fitch upgrades Lenta's rating to "BB"

Fitch Ratings upgrades Lenta rating

St. Petersburg, Russia; 11 July 2016 - Lenta, (LSE, MOEX: LNTA), one of the largest retail chains in Russia, today announced that the Fitch Ratings has upgraded its Long-term foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) from 'BB-' to 'BB' and its National Long-term rating from 'AA-(rus)' to 'A+(rus)'. The outlook on the ratings is stable.

The upgrade of Lenta ratings to 'BB' reflects the Company's proven execution of its sales growth strategy while maintaining strong profitability.  

Fitch's expectation that Lenta will be able to further strengthen its market position and increase the scale of its business over the medium term, while keeping conservative

credit metrics consistent with higher ratings.

About Lenta

Lenta is the largest hypermarket chain in Russia (in terms of selling space) and the country's fifth largest retail chain (in terms of 2015 sales). The Company was founded in 1993 in St. Petersburg. Lenta operates 147 hypermarkets in 72 cities across Russia and 42 supermarkets in Moscow and St. Petersburg, with a total of approximately 922,865 sq.m of selling space. The average Lenta hypermarket store has selling space of approximately 6,000 sq.m. The average Lenta supermarket store has selling space of approximately 1,000 sq.m. The Company operates six owned hypermarket distribution centres.

The Company's price-led hypermarket formats are differentiated in terms of their promotion and pricing strategies as well as their local product assortment. The Company employed approximately 38,414 people as of 31 December 20151.

The Company's management team combines a mix of local knowledge and international expertise coupled with extensive operational experience in Russia. Lenta's largest shareholders include TPG Capital and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, both of which are committed to maintaining high standards of corporate governance. Lenta is listed on the London Stock Exchange and on the Moscow Exchange and trades under the ticker: 'LNTA'.

For further information please visit www.lentainvestor.com, or contact:

 [1] FTE (full-time equivalent). Average FTE for 2015 was 31,307 employees.