HNB assigned international rating

Hatton National Bank PLC, yesterday received an International Credit Rating from Moody’s Investors Service. Rajendra Theagarajah, Managing Director / CEO of HNB PLC said “we are delighted to announce that HNB has been assigned an international rating by Moody’s which is on par with the sovereign rating of B1 of Sri Lanka.

This is the first ever international rating obtained by a Sri Lankan bank. We would like to thank Barclays Capital and Citi Bank the joint advisers to the rating for the excellent support extended throughout the process.”

Moody’s Investors Service has assigned following debt and deposit ratings to Hatton National Bank, with a stable outlook.

The detailed ratings assigned are : Local currency deposits : B1/NP ,Foreign currency deposits : B2/NP, Foreign currency senior unsecured debt : B1,Foreign currency issuer rating : B1. Moody’s has also assigned E+ bank financial strength rating (BFSR), mapping to a base line credit assessment (BCA) of b1 with a stable outlook.

This is the first assignment of international ratings for HNB. These ratings and outlooks take into account the balance of strengths and weaknesses characterizing HNB’s credit profile on a standalone basis, as well as our assumptions on the probability of government support in times of stress, which we assess as moderate. At E+ / b1, our support assumption does not result in any rating uplift.

HNB’s business model is geared towards lending to corporates and small and medium-sized enterprises, though it has a diversified portfolio of retail clients and products.

Its credit profile is characterized by a significant domestic franchise, with a market share of approximately 10% and an extensive network of branches and ATMS distributed throughout the country.