Press Release

VIS Reaffirms Fund Stability Rating of Askari Cash Fund

Karachi, December 27, 2023: VIS Credit Rating Company Limited (VIS) has reaffirmed Fund Stability Ratings (FSR) of Askari Cash Fund (ACF) at ‘AA+(f)’ (Double A Plus (f)). Medium to long-term entity rating of ‘AA+’ reflects high degree of stability in Net Asset Value; Risk is modest but may vary slightly from time to time because of changing economic conditions. Previous rating action was announced on January 04, 2023.

Launched in June 2009, ACF is an open-end, money market fund, managed by Pak Oman Asset Management Company Limited. The objective of the Fund is to provide the investors with a high level of liquidity along with extremely low credit and price volatility. The Fund shall provide the facility to invest in an underlying portfolio primarily comprising of government securities (Treasury Bills) and other Authorized Investments which shall enable the investor to manage their liquidity efficiently.

The Fund’s size has plummeted to Rs. 1.3b at end-June’23, down from Rs. 2.0b at end-June’22. Although the Fund has breached the minimum cash requirement on multiple occasion during FY23, albeit the same remains complaint as per the Investment Policy Statement (IPS) based on monthly average figure. The Fund remain compliant with the minimum rating specified in the IPS.

The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) remained within capped limit of 90 days. The fund's concentration risk has increased as of June’23 with top ten investors accounting for 71% as of June’23 (June’22: 61%) as the fund’s retail unit holding pattern has decreased as of June’23. Although the Fund’s return has outpaced the benchmark and peer average return, it is positioned in the third quartile relative to the peers.

For further information on this rating announcement, please contact Mr. M. Amin Hamdani (Ext: 217) or the undersigned (Ext: 201) at (021) 35311861-4 or email at info@vis.com.pk.






Javed Callea
Advisor

Applicable Rating Criteria: Fund Stability
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/FundstabilityRating.pdf

VIS Issue/Issuer Rating Scale
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/VISRatingScales.pdf

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