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Fitch Lifts Indonesian Banks’ Ratings
Jakarta Globe | December 19, 2011

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International ratings agency Fitch Ratings has upgraded eight Indonesian banks’ long-term credit ranking, following an upgrade of the nation’s sovereign debt to investment grade last week.

On Monday, Fitch announced it had upgraded the Long Term Foreign Currency ratings of four state-controlled lenders: Bank Mandiri, Bank Rakyat Indonesia, Bank Negara Indonesia and Lembaga Pembiayaan Export-Import Indonesia (EximBank), from BB+ to BBB-.

Julita Wikana, director with Fitch’s financial institutions team, said that the upgrade “reflected Fitch’s view of a higher probability of state support in times of need, owing to the government’s improving credit profile and the banks’ continued systemic importance to the domestic economy.”

Bank Mandiri is the nation’s largest lender, Bank Negara is the fourth and EximBank is the nation’s official export financing agency.

Fitch also raised the LTFC ratings of three lenders in which the majority stake is owned by foreign investors: CIMB Niaga, Bank OCBC NISP and Bank Internasional Indonesia. Their LTFCs have been upgraded to investment BBB from BB+.

Fitch said these rating actions reflected an expectation of strong support from their foreign parent banks, who received higher ratings than Indonesia’s sovereign debt rating.

Fitch also upgraded Bank Central Asia’s LTFC ratings to BBB- from BB+ because of a “stable outlook.”

Fitch said BCA has demonstrated a sound “track record and stronger credit standing, relative to rated domestic peers, through the economic cycles.” BCA is Indonesia’s third biggest lender.

Last week, the rating assessor raised Indonesia’s long-term foreign and local currency debt rating to BBB- from BB+, putting the country into investment grade after 14 years of stability.

Jeffrosenberg Tan, head of research at Sinarmas Sekuritas said Indonesia’s “new higher rating will unlock more foreign buyers” for Indonesian assets and “lower the cost of financing” for both the government and corporations.