Caribbean Information and Credit Rating Services Limited (CariCRIS) has upgraded the regional scale Issuer Ratings of NCB Financial Group Limited (NCBFG) to CariA+ (Local Currency) and CariA (Foreign Currency) and reaffirmed the Jamaican national scale rating of jmAAA (Local Currency) and jmAA+ (Foreign Currency). The regional scale ratings indicate that the level of creditworthiness of this issuer, adjudged in relation to other issuers in the Caribbean is good. The local currency national scale ratings indicate that the level of creditworthiness of this issuer, adjudged in relation to other issuers in Jamaica is the highest. The one notch uplift in the regional scale ratings is being driven by the improved credit risk profile of the sovereign over the last 12 months, on account of the ongoing IMF-led fiscal consolidation that has resulted in steady real gross domestic product (GDP) growth of just under 2% in 2018, improved overall fiscal operations, healthy primary surpluses and a declining debt/GDP that is estimated at around 95% as at March 2019, down from 104% in March 2018. CariCRIS also assigned a stable outlook on the ratings. The stable outlook reflects our view that the NCB Financial Group’s financial performance will continue to be strong over the next 12-15 months, as the loan portfolio of the Group’s banking subsidiary, National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCBJ), continues to expand, spurred by improved economic activity in Jamaica. Further, CariCRIS expects NCBFG to benefit materially from its investment in NCB Global Holdings Limited (NCBGH) and from the several business development initiatives being pursued across the Group. The ratings of NCBFG are supported by the Group’s leading market share in the Jamaican commercial banking industry, a strong presence in the securities and insurance industries and an emerging dominant player in the regional financial services industry. The ratings are further supported by a sustained financial performance underpinned by diverse and resilient income streams, continued asset growth and comfortable capitalization levels. Asset quality remains good and is supported by a reduction in non-performing loans. There have also been improvements in risk infrastructure and a focus on technology which support strategic planning. These ratings strengths are tempered by the prevailing macroeconomic challenges in Trinidad and Tobago which is one of its operating territories. NCBFG-Rating-Release-2019