Ahlibank – Ratings Affirmed with a Stable Outlook

Capital Intelligence Ratings (CI Ratings or CI) today announced that it has affirmed the Long-Term Foreign Currency Rating (LT FCR) and Short-Term Foreign Currency Rating (ST FCR) of Ahlibank Q.P.S.C. (ABQ or the Bank) at ‘A+’ and ‘A1’, respectively. At the same time, CI Ratings has affirmed ABQ’s Bank Standalone Rating (BSR) of ‘bbb+’, Core Financial Strength (CFS) rating of ‘bbb+’ and Extraordinary Support Level (ESL) of High. The Outlook for the LT FCR and BSR remains Stable.

The Bank’s LT FCR is set three notches above the BSR to reflect the high likelihood of official extraordinary support in case of need. This is based on the government’s strong track record of supporting Qatari banks. Moreover, the government has ownership stakes in all Qatari banks. The government’s financial capacity to support the Bank is also considered to be strong, given Qatar’s sovereign ratings (‘AA’/‘A1+’/Stable).

ABQ’s BSR is based on a CFS rating of…