Fitch affirms Ardshinbank’s ratings and revises outlook to stable

Тoday FitchRatings has affirmed Ardshinbank’s B+ Long Term Issuer Default Rating. The Outlook has been revised from Negative to Stable.

The FitchRatings provided rating rationale and in particular stated that “the bank’s ratings are driven by bank’s reasonable financial metrics, underpinned by the recovering economy and relative currency stability, available capital and liquidity buffers and solid domestic franchise (end-2016 market shares by total assets: 13% for Ardshin)”.

The revision of the Outlook from Negative to Stable “reflects Fitch’s expectation that potential asset quality pressures, in particular, arising from the restructured/risky exposures could be gradually absorbed through the bank’s earnings without eroding the bank’s capital”.

The FitchRatings also mentioned Ardshinbank’s last M&A transaction – “The recent merger with a smaller domestic Areximbank had a neutral effect on Ardshin’s ratings, as Arexim contributed a minor 8% to the combined assets of a merged bank, while its balance sheet has been largely cleaned-up by the previous owners prior to the merger”.

Ardshinbank’s rating matches the one published for the Republic of Armenia, being the highest possible that an Armenian private entity can qualify for.

Ardshinbank is the only Armenian private company with two ratings from internationally recognized and reputable rating agencies – Moody’s and Fitch rating.