JOHANNESBURG - S&P Global Ratings restored the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to investment grade with a BBB+ rating ​and a stable ⁠outlook, nearly 12 years after its last assessment.

The rating is one ‌notch above Moody's Baa2 and comes months after Afreximbank severed ties with Fitch Ratings, accusing ​the agency of misjudging its mission following a downgrade to junk status amid disagreements over the ​bank's role ​in debt restructurings for Ghana and Zambia. Fitch subsequently withdrew its ratings entirely.

In a statement dated June 11, S&P cited Afreximbank's record as a ⁠countercyclical lender and its substantial shareholder support as rationale for its rating.

The lender's total assets, S&P noted, had expanded to $42.3 billion by end-2025, up from $7.1 billion in 2015.

Credit ratings often guide the costs of capital for a borrower.

DEBATE ​OVER STATUS

Afreximbank has ‌been at ⁠the centre of ⁠a debate over lenders' eligibility for "preferred creditor status" - commonly granted to multilateral institutions such as the ​International Monetary Fund and World Bank, which shields them ‌from losses during sovereign debt restructurings.

Unlike those institutions, ⁠Afreximbank's mix of public and private shareholders complicates its claim to that status.

S&P said it did not incorporate preferred creditor status into its assessment on the grounds that Afreximbank provides almost 80% of its loans to private-sector entities.

However, it acknowledged that Afreximbank, alongside other institutions, had experienced prolonged payment arrears in recent years, notably following the defaults and debt restructurings in Ghana and Zambia.

S&P noted that Afreximbank said in December that it had come to an ‌agreement with Ghana on its $750 million loan, but that the ⁠lender had not announced a resolution with ​Zambia.

The agency warned that further sovereign restructurings could weigh on Afreximbank's asset quality.

"The bank's exposure to sovereigns undertaking debt restructurings, particularly under the G20 Common Framework in recent ​years, poses a ‌potential risk to the bank's asset quality should other ⁠sovereigns enter similar comprehensive restructurings," S&P ​said.