Business1 December 20152 min read

Moody’s, Fitch affirm credit ratings of GIB

By DT News Network. I nternational credit rating agencies Moody's and Fitch have both affirmed Gulf International Bank's (GIB) credit ratings. Fitch affirmed GIB's long- term credit rating at 'A' with a stable outlook. Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) affirmed GIB's senior debt and foreign curren

Editorial Team Legacy

Published 1 December 2015, 8:00 · Updated 21:46

Link copied

Moody’s, Fitch affirm credit ratings of GIB

International credit rating agencies Moody’s and Fitch have both affirmed Gulf International Bank’s (GIB) credit ratings.

Fitch affirmed GIB’s long- term credit rating at ‘A’ with a stable outlook. Moody’s Investors Service (Moody’s) affirmed GIB’s senior debt and foreign currency deposit rating at A3 and upgraded the outlook from negative to stable.

Fitch explained in an open statement that GIB’s ratings reflect the bank’s comfortable liquidity and solid capitalisation and its somewhat more conservative risk appetite than domestic peers.”

Moody’s affirmed GIB’s A3 senior debt and foreign currency deposit ratings; A3 senior unsecured MTN programme (foreign currency) ratings; and A3 long-term counterparty risk assessment ratings. Concurrently, the rating agency changed from negative to stable the outlook on the bank’s A3 deposit ratings.

Moody’s stated that the affirmation of the ratings “reflects GIB’s strong capital and liquidity buffers; improvements in the bank’s asset quality metrics; and a reduction in the level of concentrations of the bank’s asset base”.

Moody’s emphasized GIB’s positive trend in its asset quality, stating “as of June 2015, the ratio of non- performing loans to gross loans declined to 2.68 per cent from 5.98pc as of December 2012”. The agency further explained that “the affirmation of GIB’s A3 foreign-currency deposit and senior debt ratings reflect Moody’s view of a very high probability of support from the bank’s major shareholder, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund”.

Dr. Yahya Alyahya, GIB’s Chief Executive Officer, commented on the affirmations, saying: “We’re positive this strength will further improve in future as we expand our presence in the region and globally, generating a steady source of funding and diversified earnings for our shareholders.”

Moody’s, Fitch affirm credit ratings of GIB

Editorial Team Legacy

Share your reaction!

Comments