Fitch upgrades 10 Sri Lankan NBFIs’ ratings

• Affirms 8 following national scale recalibration

Fitch Ratings has upgraded the National Long-Term Ratings of 10 Sri Lankan non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) and affirmed the ratings of eight. 

This comes after the agency’s Sri Lankan National Rating scale was recalibrated to reflect the changes in relative creditworthiness among the country’s issuers, following the upgrade of Sri Lanka’s Long-Term Local-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to ‘CCC+’, from ‘CCC-’, on December 20, 2024.

Rating actions on NBFIs with National Long-Term Ratings that are driven by their standalone profiles:

• Central Finance Company PLC (CF) upgraded to ‘A(lka)’, from ‘A-(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• LB Finance PLC upgraded to ‘A-(lka)’, from ‘BBB+(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• Fintrex Finance Limited upgraded to ‘BB(lka)’, from ‘BB-(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• Citizens Development Business Finance PLC (CDB) affirmed at ‘BBB(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• Senkadagala Finance PLC (Senka) affirmed at ‘BBB(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• Mercantile Investments and Finance PLC (MIF) affirmed at ‘BBB-(lka)’; Outlook Stable

Rating actions on bank-supported NBFIs, following actions on their parent banks: 

• People’s Leasing & Finance PLC (PLC) upgraded to ‘A(lka)’, from ‘A-(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• CBC Finance LTD (CBCF) upgraded to ‘A(lka)’, from ‘BBB+(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• HNB Finance PLC (HNBF) upgraded to ‘A(lka)’, from ‘BBB+(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• Siyapatha Finance PLC upgraded to ‘A(lka)’, from ‘BBB+(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• Merchant Bank of Sri Lanka & Finance PLC (MBSL) upgraded to ‘A(lka)’, from ‘BBB+(lka); Outlook Stable

• UB Finance PLC (UBF) affirmed at ‘BB(lka)’; Outlook remains Negative

Actions on shareholder support-driven National Long-Term Ratings of local corporate-owned NBFIs: 

• Abans Finance PLC (AFP) upgraded to ‘A-(lka)’/Stable, from ‘BBB+(lka)’/Negative

• Singer Finance (Lanka) PLC (SFP) upgraded to ‘BBB+(lka)’, from ‘BBB(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• Dialog Finance PLC (DF) affirmed at ‘AA(lka)’; Outlook Stable

• Richard Pieris Finance Limited (RPF) affirmed at ‘A(lka)’; Outlook revised to Stable, from Negative

• AMW Capital Leasing And Finance PLC (AMWCL) affirmed at ‘BBB(lka)’; Outlook remains Negative

• Senfin Asset Management (Private) Limited affirmed at ‘BBB-(lka)’; Outlook Stable