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The Pakistan Credit Rating Agency Limited
Press Release

Date
17-Oct-25

Analyst
Usama Ali
usama.ali@pacra.com
+92-42-35869504
www.pacra.com

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This press release is being transmitted for the sole purpose of dissemination through print/electronic media. The press release may be used in full or in part without changing the meaning or context thereof with due credit to PACRA

PACRA Maintains Stability Rating of NBP Financial Sector Income Fund

Rating Type Stability Rating
Current
(17-Oct-25 )
Previous
(17-Apr-25 )
Action Maintain Maintain
Long Term A+(f) A+(f)
Short Term - -
Outlook Stable Stable
Rating Watch - -

NBP Financial Sector Income Fund ('NFSIF' or 'the Fund') is a medium-risk profile fund with an investment objective to provide income enhancement and capital preservation through investments in prime quality financial sector TFCs/Sukuks, bank deposits, and short-term money market instruments. In terms of asset allocation as of end Jun-25, the Fund had invested ~72.6% in Cash, ~11.6% in T-Bills, ~6.1% in PIBs, ~3.8% in Placement with Banks/ DFIs, ~2.2% in TFCs/ Sukuk, ~1.3% as Certificate of Investment, ~0.5% in GoP Ijarah Sukuk, ~0.1% in MTS, and the balance in others including receivables. From a credit quality perspective, allocations included ~32.8% in AAA-rated avenues, ~18.2% in Government Securities, ~18% in A+, ~15.7% in A, ~12.6% in AA-, ~0.6% in AA-, with the remainder in other rated avenues. The Fund's Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) stood at 129 days while its duration was 67 days as of end-June 2025, reflecting credit risk exposure but limited interest rate risk. The unit holding pattern showed high concentration risk with the top 10 investors representing ~52.31% of net assets, creating significant redemption risk.
Going forward, any material changes in the investment policy or the devised rating criteria for the assigned rating would have an impact on the ratings.

About the Entity
NBP Fund Management Limited (the 'Company'), established in 2005, is licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) to carry out asset management and investment advisory services. The National Bank of Pakistan is the largest shareholder of the company, with a ~54% stake, followed by Baltoro Growth Fund (~36%) and individual investors (~10%). The CEO of NBP Fund Management Limited, Dr. Amjad Waheed, CFA, has over 25 years of experience in mutual funds and portfolio management. The Company’s eight-member Board of Directors includes three independent directors and the CEO. With total assets under management of ~PKR 483bln as of June 2025, the Company manages a diversified portfolio of twenty-six open-end mutual funds, four voluntary pension schemes, and one exchange-traded fund (ETF).

The primary function of PACRA is to evaluate the capacity and willingness of an entity to honor its obligations. Our ratings reflect an independent, professional and impartial assessment of the risks associated with a particular instrument or an entity. PACRA's comprehensive offerings include instrument and entity credit ratings, insurer financial strength ratings, fund ratings, asset manager ratings and real estate gradings. PACRA opinion is not a recommendation to purchase, sell or hold a security, in as much as it does not comment on the security's market price or suitability for a particular investor.