On Oct. 5, 2005, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'A-/A-2' long- and short-term counterparty credit ratings to Saudi Arabia-based Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corp. (Al Rajhi). The outlook is stable. The ratings on Al Rajhi reflect the bank's healthy retail customer franchise, very high profitability, lower-than-peers concentrations in loans and deposits, and strong capitalization. The ratings are constrained by limited business and geographic diversification, increasing loan leverage and competition, and the bank's vulnerability to shocks in real estate and capital markets. Al Rajhi is the third-largest Saudi bank in terms of assets. With the most extensive branch network in the kingdom (in excess of 380 branches), the bank has been able to build up the widest demand
