Global Arab Network | Fitch Assigns National Bank of Egypt's Upcoming MTN Issue Expected BB+ Rating

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Fitch Assigns National Bank of Egypt's Upcoming MTN Issue Expected BB+ Rating

Global Arab Network - - Gamal Ragay

Friday, 23 July 2010 10:51

Fitch Assigns National Bank of Egypt's Upcoming MTN Issue Expected BB+ Rating

Fitch Ratings has today assigned the National Bank of Egypt's (NBE) forthcoming USD-denominated medium term note issue an expected rating of 'BB+'.

NBE has a Long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of 'BB+' with a Stable Outlook, a Short-term IDR of 'B', an Individual Rating of 'D' and a Support Rating of '3'. The bank also has National Long- and Short-term ratings of 'AA(egy)' and 'F1+(egy)' respectively.

The notes will be issued by a special purpose entity, Nile Finance Limited, which is incorporated in the Cayman Islands. All payments to be made in respect of the notes will be unconditionally and irrevocably guaranteed by NBE. The issued notes will rank as unconditional, unsubordinated and unsecured obligations of the bank. The notes' rating is therefore in line with NBE's Long-term IDR.

The final rating is contingent upon the receipt of final documents conforming to information already received.

NBE is wholly owned by the Egyptian government. It is by far Egypt's largest bank by assets, with a dominant domestic franchise, especially on the funding side, and accounts for over a quarter of total system deposits and over a fifth of loans. NBE offers a range of retail, wholesale and some investment banking services through its extensive branch network.

Fitch's National ratings provide a relative measure of creditworthiness for rated entities in countries with relatively low international sovereign ratings and where there is demand for such ratings. The best risk within a country is rated 'AAA' and other credits are rated only relative to this risk. National ratings are designed for use mainly by local investors in local markets and are signified by the addition of an identifier for the country concerned, such as 'AAA(egy)' for National ratings in Egypt. Specific letter grades are not therefore internationally comparable.

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