Press Release
VIS Reaffirms Fund Stability Rating of Faysal Islamic Cash Fund
Karachi, December 15, 2023: VIS Credit Ratings Company Ltd. (VIS) has reaffirmed Fund Stability Rating (FSR) of ‘AA (f)’ (Double A (f)) to Faysal Islamic Cash Fund (“FICF” or “the Fund”). The medium to long-term rating of ‘AA’ denotes High degree of stability in Net Asset Value; Risk is modest but may vary slightly from time to time because of changing economic conditions. The previous rating action was announced on December 13, 2022.
Launched in August 2020, Faysal Islamic Cash Fund (FICF) is an open end money market fund. The objective of the fund is to seek maximum possible preservation of capital and a reasonable rate of return via investing primarily in Shariah Compliant money market securities.
Assigned rating takes into account strong growth in the Fund size, sizeable liquid assets and sound credit quality. Assets under Management (AUM) grew to Rs, 21.5b at end June’23 against Rs. 19.6 at end June 22. During the year, the fund adhered to the stipulations outlined in the Investment Policy Statement (IPS), although the permissible threshold for short-term sukuk exposure exceeded during May’23. On average, the fund's portfolio predominantly comprised of cash (65.8%), short-term Sukuk (19.1%), and placements with banks and DFIs (12.8%).
In line with FICF's IPS, the fund restricted its credit exposure to issuers or issues with a minimum ‘AA’ rating. The same is in line with the VIS rating criteria for the given rating. Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) of the fund also stayed remained the prescribed limits.
As of June’23, top 10 clients made up around 59% of the total AUMs. FICF effectively manages redemption risk through its asset allocation strategy, investing in highly liquid investments. Additionally, the fund has outperformed both the benchmark return and the peer average, maintaining its position in the first quartile relative to peers.
For further information on this ratings announcement, please contact Mr. Muhammad Amin Hamdani (Ext: 217) or the undersigned (Ext: 207) on 021-35311861-64 or email at info@vis.com.pk.
Sara Ahmed
Director
Applicable Rating Criteria: Fund Stability (September 2018)
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/FundstabilityRating.pdf
VIS Issue/Issuer Rating Scale
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/VISRatingScales.pdf