Karachi, April 30, 2009: JCR-VIS Credit Rating Company Limited has maintained the medium to long term entity rating of Tameer Microfinance Bank Limited (TMFB) at ‘A-’ (Single A Minus). Short term rating has been upgraded from ‘A-3’ (A-Three) to ‘A-2’ (A-Two). Outlook on the ratings has been revised from ‘Negative’ to ‘Stable’.

Fresh capital to the tune of Rs. 1b was injected into TMFB as Telenor Pakistan Limited (TPL) acquired a stake of 51% during December 2008. With the inflow of fresh capital, financial strength of the bank recuperated at the end of the year which had deteriorated on account of weakening of asset quality indicators in 2007.

Despite posting improvement on this front, concentration in deposits remains high. Mobilization of higher amounts of low cost deposits or an alternate funding mechanism that remains stable in adverse market conditions will be essential in the long-term, in order to curb significant liquidity risks in future. Going forward, by leveraging on TPL’s existing network of outlets, branchless banking will be launched by TMFB to access low cost deposits and mobilize fee-based business. The concept of branchless banking is new in both Pakistan and globally and its acceptance in the market along with a requisite control infrastructure is yet to be fully developed.

The microfinance sector has experienced steady growth in the past few years; though stress on profitability persists as market players are still at a nascent stage of development. The deployment strategy of fresh equity in TMFB will charter the course for the future profitability of the bank. Trends in this regard will be monitored by JCR-VIS.

For further information on this rating announcement, please contact Ms. Sabeen Saleem (Ext: 510) or Ms. Sobia Maqbool (Ext: 506) at 5311861-70 or fax to 5311873.

Safdar Kazi
Director