PACRA Maintains the Stability Rating of NBP Financial Sector Income Plus Fund

NBP Financial Sector Income Plus Fund (“NBP-FSIPF” or “the Fund”) is categorized under a medium-risk profile, with the objective of providing income enhancement through investment in financial sector TFCs/Sukuks, bank deposits, and short-term money market instruments. As of Sep’26, the Fund’s Assets Under Management (AUM) stood at PKR 72,215mln, compared to PKR 15,423mln as of Apr’26 (the last review), reflecting an expansion of approximately PKR 56,792mln over the review period, indicative of strong and accelerating investor confidence in the Fund’s financial sector income proposition. In terms of asset allocation, approximately 93% of the portfolio was invested in cash bank deposits, ~2.7% in placements with banks/DFIs, ~2% in money market placements, ~1.4% in Treasury Bills, and ~0.9% in other eligible instruments, reflecting a near-exclusively liquid portfolio positioning consistent with the Fund’s income enhancement mandate. From a credit quality perspective, approximately 27.5% of the Fund’s assets were invested in Government Securities and AAA rated instruments, ~50.7% in A+ rated instruments, ~12.7% in AA rated avenues, ~8.3% in A- rated instruments, and ~0.9% in other exposures. The overall credit profile is considered sound and well-structured, with the dominant allocation to A+ rated financial sector instruments providing a strong investment-grade anchor to the portfolio, commensurate with the Fund’s medium-risk mandate. The Fund’s Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) stood at 4 days as of Sep’26, with a modified duration of 0.01 years, reflecting virtually zero sensitivity to interest rate movements and reinforcing the Fund’s strong liquidity position. Meanwhile, the unit holding pattern reflects a relatively high degree of concentration, with the top 10 investors accounting for ~73% of the Fund’s total holdings, thereby exposing the Fund to moderate-to-high redemption risk. However, the Fund’s near-exclusively cash-based portfolio and ultra-short WAM profile provide strong comfort regarding its ability to meet any potential redemption requirements swiftly and without undue pressure on the portfolio. Investor concentration is expected to diversify progressively as the Fund continues to gain scale and broaden its investor base over time. In terms of performance, since its launch, the Fund has delivered annualized return of 11.4% against a benchmark return of 11.2%, reflecting an outperformance of approximately 20 basis points. This above-benchmark outcome is considered a commendable result for a newly launched medium-risk income fund, demonstrating the Fund’s strong capacity to generate competitive risk-adjusted returns through selective exposure across the financial sector credit spectrum while maintaining its conservative, liquidity-first portfolio positioning throughout the review period.
Going forward, any material changes in the investment policy or the devised rating criteria for the assigned rating would have impact on the ratings.

About the Entity
NBP Fund Management Limited (the 'Company'), established in 2005, is licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) to carry out asset management and investment advisory services. The National Bank of Pakistan is the largest shareholder of the company, with a ~54% stake, followed by Baltoro Growth Fund (~36%) and individual investors (~10%). The CEO of NBP Fund Management Limited, Dr. Amjad Waheed, CFA, has over 25 years of experience in mutual funds and portfolio management. The Company’s eight-member Board of Directors includes three independent directors and the CEO. With total assets under management of ~PKR 595.6bln as of Sep'26, the Company manages a diversified portfolio of thirty three open-end mutual funds, eight voluntary pension schemes, and one exchange-traded fund (ETF).