DUBAI- Mohamed Hadi Al Hussaini, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Etihad Credit Insurance (ECI), commended the ECI for receiving the Insurance Financial Strength (IFS) Rating and an Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of AA- (Very Strong) with Stable Outlook from Fitch Ratings, for the third year in a row.

Fitch views the ECI’s systemic importance to the UAE as the main driver of the IFS Rating. The ECI was founded to insure the UAE-based non-oil export companies against non-payment. The company also protects investments outside the UAE against political risks and supports corporate bidding for international tenders.

Al Hussaini said, "I take this opportunity to congratulate Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade and Deputy Chairman of ECI, the Board of Directors, and the entire executive management team of the ECI for receiving AA- rating with a Stable Outlook from Fitch Ratings for the third consecutive year.

"This high ranking reflects the federal export credit company’s unwavering commitment to helping the UAE’s businesses gain a competitive edge in the international market by providing them protection and trade confidence, thereby bolstering the UAE’s non-oil economy, in line with the vision and the principles stated by our country’s wise leadership for the next 10 decades."

Though only in its fourth year of operation, the ECI has already made solid contributions to employment and the economy. As of September 2021, ECI recorded a new milestone by issuing AED3.4 billion worth of revolving credit guarantees, which is three times higher than the same period of the previous year, equivalent to the AED10 billion-supported UAE non-oil trade (50 per cent of which are exports) targeted for 2021.

The UAE federal government and the governments of five out of the seven emirates, including the governments of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, own the ECI.

Commenting on this achievement, ECI CEO Massimo Falcioni, said, "On behalf of the ECI Management, I am immensely grateful to ECI Board of Directors for their continued trust and inspiration and would like to congratulate the ECI management team and employees for their committed efforts, which led to receiving this high rating for the third consecutive year. It reiterates ECI’s important role in the diversification of the country’s economy and confirms the federal agency’s strong financial position and capability to protect UAE’s exporters and investors in the international marketplace."

According to Fitch, the ECI’s capitalisation is robust, supported by a solid capital base with a total paid-in capital of AED250 million, with a further AED750 million committed by the shareholders. It uses treaty, facultative and quota-share agreements placed through brokers to cede 65 percent of its credit, surety, and political risk business to ‘A’- and ‘AA'-rated reinsurance companies with a limit of AED100 million per reinsurer.

In addition, the ECI has achieved an ESG Relevance Score of ‘4’ for Governance Structure due to its ownership by and its strong ties to the sovereign, reflecting the high governance ESG relevance scores of the UAE sovereign rating.

 

© Copyright Emirates News Agency (WAM) 2021.