...Commercial International Bank (Egypt) S.A.E (CIB)'s Issuer Default Ratings are driven by its standalone creditworthiness, as expressed by the Viability Rating (VR). CIB's VR reflects its large exposure to the Egyptian sovereign through government securities holdings (30% of total assets at end-2024), balances at the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE; 18%), and large lending to public-sector companies (7%). The VR also reflects CIB's solid franchise, strong profitability through cycles, resilient loan quality, adequate capitalisation, stable funding and high liquidity. Largest Private Bank in Egypt: CIB is Egypt's third-largest bank and the largest private bank, with 6% of banking system assets at end-2024. CIB has a strong revenue-generating franchise that is mainly corporate-focused, and a solid retail division serving over 2 million customers. High Exposure to the Sovereign: Total sovereign exposure (mainly in Egyptian pounds) represented 55% of total assets and was equal to 5x the bank's common...
