SB Corp gets high credit mark

MANILA, Philippines - SB Corp., the country’s lead agency for SME (small and medium enterprises) development, obtained an issuer credit rating of PRS Aa minus from Philippine Rating Services Corp.

PRS Aa is the second highest rating category on PhilRatings’ existing issuer credit rating scale.

A company rated PRS Aa has a strong capacity to meet its financial commitments relative to that of other Philippine corporates.

An issuer credit rating is a measure of a company’s overall creditworthiness, relative to obligations maturing within one year.  

SB Corp. is the result of the merger between Small Business Guarantee and Finance Corp. and the Guarantee Fund for SME.

SB Corp’s focus is to provide access on finance, financial management and capacity building to SMEs.

It has several programs for the micro small and medium enterprises market: wholesale lending to smaller financial institutions, cooperatives and foundations; retail or direct lending to micro, small and medium enterprises (mSMEs); and guarantee for larger banks to cover mSME loans without collateral or with insufficient collateral.

In issuing the rating, Philratings also took into consideration SB Corp.’s role in the development of the country’s mSME sector.

Last year, SB Corp.’s audited pre-tax income was lower by 14 percent at P14.8 million, compared with the P16.9 million recorded in 2013.

Philratings noted that despite minimal capitalization, SB Corp. has been able to sustain its operations with the support of various international financial institutions such as the Asian Development Bank, International Fund for Agricultural Development, and Kreditanstalt fur Weiderafbau.