In its first rating of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, Moody’s Investors Service has assigned on Monday an A1 long-term issuer rating – its fifth-highest investment grade rating- to the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
The Kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund was also assigned an Aaa.sa long-term issuer national scale rating and an A1 baseline credit assessment, which reflects PIF’s strong fundamental credit strengths.
PIF’s governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan noted that achieving a credit rating is an important step for the fund which continues to grow its investment portfolio and achieve its objectives.
Al-Rumayyan stressed the rating as a significant achievement that reflects several factors, including the fund’s strong financial profile, the diversity of its business and portfolio, and its world-class governance, which will further enhance PIF’s access to international capital markets while continuing to diversify its funding sources in line with PIF’s strategy.
The credit rating agency has also noted that considering PIF’s alignment with the Government of Saudi Arabia, its A1 issuer rating reflects its creditworthiness and the very high level of interdependence between one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds and the Kingdom.
In line with the Vision 2030 strategy, PIF- with about $480 billion in assets under management – is one of the main vehicles to grow Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economy and reduce its reliance on the hydrocarbon sector.
It is also the main vehicle for growing Saudi Arabia’s investments domestically and abroad as its chairman Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman seeks to diversify the Saudi economy.
Its 2018 Vision Realization Program entails four pillars- growing PIF’s assets, localizing cutting-edge technology, unlocking new sectors in the Kingdom, and building strategic partnerships both in the country and abroad.
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