RIYADH — The Public Investment Fund (PIF) has received international credit ratings from Moody’s and Fitch for the first time, underlining the creditworthiness of the Fund and the quality of its investment portfolio in line with its growth targets.

The new credit ratings represent a milestone achieved following the reforms introduced in 2015 under the leadership of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy prime minister and minister of defense.

As part of these reforms, PIF’s management was reconstituted and oversight was transferred to the Council of Economic and Development Affairs (CEDA), which led to the launch of the Fund’s strategy and transformed it into one of the enablers of Vision 2030.

Global credit rating agency Moody’s has assigned PIF with a first-time issuer rating of A1 and a scorecard indicated rating of Aa2, with a stable outlook. Fitch has assigned PIF with a long-term issuer rating of A, with a stable outlook.

Governor of PIF Yasir Al-Rumayyan said, “Under the leadership of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, achieving a credit rating is an important step for PIF as we continue to grow our investment portfolio and achieve our objectives, having paved the way through PIF’s Strategy 2018-2020 and 2021-2025.

“Our rating is a significant achievement and a reflection of several factors, including our world-class governance, strong financial profile, and the diversity of our business and portfolio.

“This result will further enhance our access to international capital markets and continue to diversify our sources of funding which is in line with PIF’s strategy.”

In addition, Moody’s rated PIF Aaa in five sub-categories, the highest rating achievable. The five sub-categories are: Business Diversity, Financial Policy, Debt Coverage, Leverage and Liquidity.

Setting out its assessment, Moody’s highlighted PIF’s significant scale with assets under management of $410 billion as of December 2020, up from $150 billion in 2015, combined with its steady income stream and a high-quality investment portfolio

The Moody’s rating affirms PIF’s strong governance principles, where it has a commitment to maintain a strong credit profile at the subsidiary level by being represented on the board and involved in determining the financial policies of these entities.

In addition, PIF’s governance framework is guided and reviewed by five management-level committees focused on investments, risk and liquidity.

It also focused on PIF’s diversification across the Fund’s priority sectors, locally and internationally, as well as its robust financial position with low leverage, very high interest coverage and excellent liquidity profile.

Moody’s also singled out the strategic importance of PIF to Saudi Arabia as one of the main vehicles for achieving the country’s Vision 2030 objectives.

In assigning PIF with a long-term issuer rating of A, Fitch highlighted PIF’s low level of debt and net cash positive position giving it a very strong financial outlook.

Fitch also focused on the importance of PIF to Saudi Arabia and its role in promoting the diversification and the development of the non-oil sector of the national economy under Vision 2030. — SPA