OREANDA-NEWS. Al Khalij Commercial Bank (al khaliji) Q.S.C. announced that Fitch Ratings has upgraded its long-term issuer default rating (IDR) to ''''A '''' from ''''A''''. The bank’s outlook is stable.

The upgrade follows the publication of the State of Qatar''''s Long-term IDR of ''''AA'''' on the 6th of March 2015 by Fitch.

al khaliji, continues to focus its growth and activities in Qatar, its domestic market. Fitch had upgraded al khaliji’s rating to ‘A’ in 2014 based on al khaliji’s strengthened lending franchise, strong capitalization and longer track record of solid performance. Fitch noted that al khaliji’s rating benefits from a stable and supportive operating environment and reflects its conservative risk management and sound asset quality. The bank’s IDR is support-driven in light of Qatar''''s stable credit fundamentals and the very high possibility of external support to the bank if needed.

In his statement, al khaliji Group Chief Executive Officer, Fahad Al Khalifa, said: "Receiving this credit rating upgrade to ‘A ’ from Fitch is a further endorsement of al khaliji’s success in strengthening our franchise, remaining client focused and delivering a consistent performance. Our clear and distinctive strategy focuses on our home market of Qatar and we continue to provide innovative financial solutions to our chosen clients across the bank’s operations in Qatar, France and the UAE”.

According to Fitch, entities within the ''''A'''' rating exhibit “high credit quality and low default risk”. The bank''''s short term IDR rating is also maintained at “F1” after being upgraded from ''''F2'''' in 2014.

al khaliji’s Loans and advances grew to QR 26.9 billion at the end of 2014, 30% higher than the previous year, while Deposits reached QR 27.4 billion, a 38% increase in 2014 compared to QR 19.9 billion at the end of 2013.