Press Release
VIS Reaffirms Broker Fiduciary Rating of Next Capital Limited
Karachi, November 05, 2025: VIS Credit Rating Company Ltd. (VIS) has Reaffirmed the Broker Fiduciary Rating of Next Capital Limited at ‘BFR2’. Outlook on the assigned rating is ‘Stable’. Rating of BFR2 denotes strong fiduciary standards. Last rating action was announced on October 31, 2024.
The rating signifies strong ownership & governance and management and client services, along with sound internal control and regulatory compliance. Business and financial sustainability is considered adequate.
Next Capital Limited (‘NCL’ or ‘the Company’) was incorporated in December, 2009. NCL caters primarily to equity broking services to domestic retail and high net worth (HNWI) clients, local institutions, and foreign broker dealers. Alongside, the company has a reputable presence in investment banking & corporate financial advisory business in Pakistan. NCL, besides a head office based in Karachi, runs its retail operations through a branch in Lahore. The Company holds a Trading Right Entitlement Certificate (TREC) issued by the Pakistan Stock Exchange Limited (PSX) for Trading and Self-Clearing Services. The Company has also acquired a license to act as securities manager. Recently, Finqalab division has been transferred to a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. External auditors of the company are Grant Thorton Anjum Rahman Chartered Accountants and belong to category ‘A’ on the approved list of auditors published by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
Assigned rating takes into account the strong ownership and governance framework of the Company, supported by a seven-member board of directors, including two independent directors. Additionally, the Company’s board committees comprise Audit, Human Resource & Remuneration, Risk Management, and Investment, with three of these committees headed by an independent director. However, some overlap in membership has been observed across committees. The Company has strong management & client services, with online trading platforms that facilitate seamless transactions, a complaint management system whereby grievances are filed and acknowledged via SMS, and the availability of research materials, including equity reports, weekly reviews, and daily morning briefings, on its website. Nevertheless, the Company may consider enhancing the investor grievance procedures for greater visibility on the website. Moreover, undertaking invitations and advertisement along with expanding geographical footprint may help broaden customer reach. While contingency measures of the Company are in place, increasing the frequency of disaster recovery exercises may further strengthen the same. Internal control framework of the Company may be further improved by enhancing the scope of conflict-of-interest policy and disseminating the same to all stakeholders. Moreover, enhancing the frequency of trade reviews, implementing daily reporting of personal trades, and establishing an independent risk management department may further enhance the internal control framework.
Assessment of the financial profile reflects improvement in the profitability profile of the Company in FY25, primarily driven by higher brokerage revenue in line with overall positive industry trend, followed by increase in income from advisory segment. Consequently, the Company’s operational efficiency depicted improvement, albeit it remains on the higher side. The Company has phased out its proprietary investments, thereby limiting the exposure to market risk. Liquidity and capitalization profile of the Company is considered adequate. Going forward, enhancement in the revenue base, along with managing operational efficiencies, as well as improvement in capitalization and liquidity profile will remain important for the rating.
For further information on this rating, please contact at 021-35311861-64 or email at info@vis.com.pk.
Applicable Rating Criteria: Broker Fiduciary Ratings:
https://docs.vis.com.pk/Methodologies%202024/Broker-Fiduciary-Rating.pdf
VIS Rating Scale
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/VISRatingScales.pdf