Abu Dhabi-Mubasher: Moody's placed the following ratings of United Arab Bank (UAB) on review for downgrade; the Baa1 long-term and the P-2 short-term deposit ratings, as well as the baa3 baseline credit assessment (BCA) and the baa2 adjusted BCA.
The ratings agency also placed the A3 (cr) long-term and the P-2 (cr) short-term counterparty risk assessments on review for downgrade.
The primary driver is the bank's deteriorating asset quality metrics, reflecting increased problem loan formation in the bank's high-risk commercial and SME loans portfolio, said Moody’s.
UAB's problem loans increased to 3.7% of gross loans as of September 2015, from 2.6% at half-year 2015.
