Core Advisory Services

The services described below are the core offerings for our clients. However, given our desire to address our clients’ specific needs, any combination of the below may be considered. Services can be project specific or provided as an annual, ongoing and flexible advisory relationship.

Ratings

Credit ratings provide a high visible credit benchmark and support international funding diversification via debt and sukuk investors – a need heightened by continuing liquidity pressures in the GCC.

This service provides management of rating process for both rated, unrated and ‘merging’ institutions to free up valuable executive resources and ensure stronger rating outcomes and related communications.

Acreditus has unmatched insight into the regional CRA and debt investor perspectives and processes, insight that can be applied to the benefit of all our valued clients particularly regulators seeking independent insight for licensing and supervision objectives.

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Risk

Ensuring a strong risk profile will help drive a reduction your risk premium, funding costs and any (potential) underwriting fees related to potential bond/sukuk issuance.

Acreditus can objectively support investors, underwriters and regulators on their regional and specific risk assessment needs.

For banks and entities with a high degree of credit/counterparty exposure, Acreditus can help assess and formulate strategy for managing the increasing macro downside risks and restructurings in the current environment.

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Islamic Finance


Advisory in this sector is perhaps the most flexible given the very specific and unique needs of many of the participants (old and new) in the sector.

Acreditus offers a unique holistic perspective covering all facets of the industry ranging from the micro consumer level, global banking regulation and the formulation and review of key government policies designed to promote and supervise the sector both locally and globally.

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Ratings

Credit ratings provide a high visible credit benchmark and support international funding diversification via debt and sukuk investors – a need heightened by continuing liquidity pressures in the GCC. This service provides management of rating process for both rated, unrated and ‘merging’ institutions to free up valuable executive resources and ensure stronger rating outcomes and related communications.

Management teams often do not deliver their strongest performances to CRAs during their assessments. This often stems from the complexities of the various rating methodologies and a limitation of the time and resources necessary to address CRA requirements and prepare all participants.

Acreditus has unmatched insight into the regional CRA and debt investor perspectives and processes, insight that can be applied to the benefit of all our valued clients particularly regulators seeking independent insight for licensing and supervision objectives…

Where requirements are non-specific, Acreditus can be retained on a flexible, high-value retainer basis

Unrated Banks, Corps & Government Entities

Credit Ratings provide a highly visible and objective global credit benchmark to help reduce negative uncertainty around your institutions credit profile – particularly in the current challenging economic environment. They also provide management with an objective and constant credit assessment – useful in managing the firm’s risk profile.

Ratings crucially support international funding diversification through debt and sukuk capital markets which are less correlated to regional economic and liquidity pressures. Lastly they also serve as mark of ‘quality’ to help differentiate your institution from its local and international competitors.

Rated Banks, Corps & Government Entities

Those entities with existing Credit ratings in some cases may be well versed in the process and methodologies of the relevant CRAs, particularly those larger institutions. For such entities, the credit risk service is likely sufficient to support their needs.

However less resourced or experienced teams can derive substantive benefits from our rating advisory services, particularly those who feel the rating may not capture their strengths, be too conservative or may be facing negative pressures. For the latter, a pre-emptive approach to defending your institutions credit profile and CRA communication will be far more effective than any reactive credit rating strategy which are historically very ineffective.

Central Banks & Regulators

In line with global practices many local regulators have, or are in the process of passing specific regulations governing the conduct of CRAs within the country. However business models and associated conflicts at the CRAs are very esoteric, often leaving scope for inappropriately excessive or liberal regulation.

Acreditus can support in the licensing and supervision efforts of market regulators to ensure comprehensive but balanced oversight.

Acreditus can provide

Review of relevant rating agency methodologies, existing rating coverage, analytical staffing and associated CRA publications to assess for pressures and/or strategies for improvement/defence.

Recommendations to management in response to the assessment and/or manage all internal stakeholders necessary to locate, collate and deliver the financial data and relevant metrics for the annual CRA assessment.

Management of all internal stakeholders to ensure thorough preparation of high quality CRA materials and support relevant management for their annual or first-time assessment presentation.

For regulators Acreditus can objectively and independently support in the formulation of regulation by providing accurate insight to CRA business models and rating processes. CRA feedback can also be comprehensively evaluated.

For entities seeking a new rating Acreditus will also support in the evaluation and selection of the most appropriate agency.

For entities seeking a new rating Acreditus will also support the above to prepare management for their first rating agancy review and inspection.

Management of post-assessment CRA demands and initial public rating dissemination and investor communications

For regulators, Acreditus can objectively and independently support ongoing supervision and inspection efforts.

Risk

Ensuring a strong credit profile will help drive a reduction your risk premium, funding costs and any (potential) underwriting fees related to potential bond/sukuk issuance. We also support investors, underwriters and regulators on their regional and specific risk assessments.

For banks and entities with a high degree of credit/counterparty exposure, Acreditus can help assess and formulate strategy for managing the increasing macro downside risks and restructurings of these exposures in the current environment. GCC Mergers & Acquisitions activity is also on the rise as pressures and politics help drive consolidation.

With its deep regional knowledge of both the institutions and their management teams, Acreditus can help evaluate potential partners and the resultant impact to the firm’s credit profile.

Where requirements are non-specific, Acreditus can be retained annually on an ongoing, flexible, high-value basis.

 

Acreditus can provide

 

Support for executive management on their CRA relationships (if any) with high level guidance and support for improving, maintaining and/or defending ratings facing pressure or M&A activity.

Support for GCC central banks and market regulators in assessing the impact of global and local regulations and ensuring national discretion is applied to capture regional and specific risk features.

Support for GCC and Islamic central banks and market regulators in assessing regional risk drivers on a macro, country and single name level for comprehensive stress testing.

Support for GCC and Islamic market investors, underwriters and correspondent banks in understanding the regional risk drivers on a macro, country and single name level.

Support for executive management in the formation of corporate and credit and funding strategy with consideration for local and global credit and economic conditions. Aid in initial preparations for bond/sukuk issuance.

Support for executive management, treasury and investor relations teams in their credit communication strategy tailored for varying stakeholder classes such as regulators. correspondent banks, debt/sukuk investors and prospective merger/takeover targets

Support for risk management in the development of prudent internal credit underwriting, provisioning and remedial/restructuring policies.

Support for supranational entities in assessing regional risk drivers on a macro, country, banking system level for comprehensive risk and development assessments. Provision of training workshops to member countries.

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Islamic (Participation) Finance

With the immediate empathy of over a billion Muslim retail customers, the Islamic Finance sector has only over the last decade begun to realise its potential with Islamic banks providing a robust and broadly profitable foundation for growth. Overall growth remains driven by bottom-up retail demand supplemented by top-down policy initiatives of the more proactive governments.

However, the sector faces several challenges on multiple fronts; Geographic, regulatory and Shariah fragmentation of the market, Basel regulatory demands on liquidity and funding and historically many IFIs have exhibited some of the weakest asset quality metrics in their respective jurisdictions.

Advisory in this sector is perhaps the most flexible given the very specific and unique needs of many of the participants (old and new) in the sector. However, we offer a unique holistic perspective covering all facets of the industry ranging from the micro consumer level, to banking regulation, to strategic expansion and higher level overviews of key government policies and new Islamic markets globally.

Where requirements are non-specific, Acreditus can be retained on a flexible, high-value retainer basis

Acreditus can provide

Support government agencies and ministries tasked with formulating supportive policies for the growth of Islamic finance, particularly the banking and sukuk sectors

Support central banks in the supervision of Islamic banks to ensure proper capture of sector specific risks and managing any associated regulatory capital distortions to ensure financial system stability.

Support IFIs and institutional investors with their strategic goals and aspirations within the sector, helping them identify new clients, markets, opportunities and resolve existing and expected challenges.

Support the industry, society and communities by improving awareness and promoting the adoption of the ethical, social and financial inclusion underpinnings of the sector.

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