Moody’s Investors Service has upgraded the credit ratings of five Egyptian banks this month
The ratings agency upgraded the local-currency (LC) deposit ratings of the National Bank of Egypt SAE, Banque Misr SAE, Banque Du Caire SAE and Commercial International Bank SAE from Caa1 to B3.
Moody’s also raised the LC deposit rating of the Bank of Alexandria SAE to B2 from B3, while the standalone credit ratings of all five banks rose by one notch.
The corporation said the decision was prompted by a number of factors, including an improved operating environment in Egypt, a greater quality of liquidity buffers, and the increased government capacity to support financial institutions.
The news followed another announcement – Moody’s had upgraded Egypt’s issuer and senior unsecured bond ratings to B3 from Caa1, with a a “stable outlook”.
Egypt has seen a recent influx of foreign investment during a period of relative stability under current President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, with more than US$36bn worth of direct investment contracts signed at last month’s Egypt Economic Development Conference in Sharm el-Sheikh.
