20 January 2004	Tuesday	27 Ziqa'ad 1424

LAHORE, Jan 19: The Pakistan Credit Rating Agency (Pacra) has maintained the entity ratings of First International Investment Bank Ltd (Interbank) at "A" (single A) and "A1" (A one) for the long-term and short-term.

A Pacra announcement said on Monday the entity ratings were applicable to the senior unsecured creditors of the bank. The ratings of the unsecured TFCs - Regular Income of Rs136 million and Money Multiplier of Rs57 million - have been maintained at "A" (single A). These ratings denote a low expectation of credit risk and strong capacity for timely payment of financial commitments.

The ratings, according to the announcement, reflect the bank's effective risk management policies evidenced by good asset quality and the largely maintained performance from core business. The liquidity position of the bank remains strong, it said.

The announcement said amidst an increasingly competitive environment, the management remains pro-active in identifying new opportunities of increasing revenues from fund and non-fund business.