S&P Global Ratings has affirmed its issuer credit ratings on the three Azerbaijan-based banks - Kapital Bank (at BB-/B), Pasha Bank (B+/B) and Muganbank (B-/B), Report informs citing the agency.
The outlooks on the three banks remain stable.
“The affirmations follow a revision to our criteria for rating banks and nonbank financial institutions and for determining a Banking Industry Country Risk Assessment (BICRA). Our assessments of economic risk and industry risk in Azerbaijan are '9' and '9', respectively. These scores determine the BICRA and the anchor, or starting point, for our ratings on financial institutions that operate primarily in that country. The trends we see for both economic and industry risks remain stable.
The recent rapid spread of the omicron variant highlights the inherent uncertainties of the pandemic but also the importance and benefits of vaccines. While the risk of new, more severe variants displacing Omicron and evading existing immunity cannot be ruled out, our current base case assumes that existing vaccines can continue to provide significant protection against severe illness,” reads the message.
“Furthermore, many governments, businesses and households around the world are tailoring policies to limit the adverse economic impact of recurring COVID-19 waves. Consequently, we do not expect a repeat of the sharp global economic contraction of the second quarter of 2020. Meanwhile, we continue to assess how well individual issuers adapt to new waves in their geography or industry,” the rating agency noted.