Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan says Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings affirmed the bank's ratings; outlook by Fitch Ratings – "Stable", outlook by S&P Global Ratings – "Positive"

27.03.24 14:16
/KASE, March 27, 2024/ – Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan JSC (Almaty), whose securities are officially listed on Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE), has provided KASE with the following press release dated March 27, 2024: quote On 20 March 2024, Fitch Ratings has affirmed Halyk’s Long-Term Foreign- and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings at 'BBB-'. The Outlooks are Stable. As Fitch stated, the Bank's ratings are underpinned by its dominant market shares in Kazakhstan and record of robust profitability, as well as solid capitalization and liquidity. The Stable Outlook reflects Fitch's view that the Bank's credit metrics will remain strong in the medium term. The rating agency noted an exceptionally strong domestic franchise of Halyk, particularly in corporate lending, and high pricing power. This has historically translated into greater stability of asset quality and earnings through the cycle than domestic peers', which Fitch expects to continue. For these reasons, Fitch rates Halyk one notch above its operating environment score of 'bb+'. Moreover, on 19 March 2024, S&P Global Ratings revised Outlook on Halyk to Positive from Stable amid improved assessment of economic risk in Banking Industry Country Risk Assessment (BICRA) for Kazakhstan on significantly better than expected banking system’s asset quality and financial performance, as well as gradual enhancement of regulatory oversight. The Bank’s ratings are affirmed at the 'BB+/B' level. unquote The complete press release is available on: - https://kase.kz/files/emitters/HSBK/hsbk_relizs_270324_rus.pdf – in Russian; - https://kase.kz/files/emitters/HSBK/hsbk_relizs_270324_en.pdf – in English. [2024-03-27]