PACRA Maintains Stability Rating of NBP Income Opportunity Fund

NBP Income Opportunity Fund ('NIOF' or the 'Fund') is a medium-risk profile fund. The investment objective of the Fund is to seek maximum possible preservation of capital and a reasonable rate of return via investing primarily in money market & debt securities having good credit rating and liquidity. The assigned rating reflects the Fund's moderate credit and interest rate risk profile emanating from its investment strategy. As of Jun’26, the Fund’s Assets Under Management (AUM) stood at ~PKR 9.69bln, down from PKR 11.63bln as of Dec’25, reflecting a contraction in fund size during the period while maintaining the Fund’s investment strategy. In terms of asset allocation, approximately 66.6% of the portfolio was invested in Bank Deposits, ~19% in PIBs, ~6.3% in TFCs/Sukuks, ~4% in T-Bills, ~2.4% in Commercial Papers, and the remaining ~1.7% in other instruments including receivables. The allocation reflects a diversified portfolio balancing liquidity through bank deposits with exposure to sovereign and corporate fixed-income instruments. From a credit quality perspective, ~47.4% of the assets were invested in AAA rated avenues, ~23% in Government Securities, ~11.9% in A+ rated instruments, ~7.5% in AA- rated avenues, ~3.2% in A1 rated instruments, with the remaining portion allocated to other categories including receivables, indicating a broadly sound credit profile with meaningful exposure to high-quality rated instruments. At end-Jun’26, the Fund’s WAM stood at 182 days, indicating credit risk at the lower end of the moderate spectrum, while the duration stood at 108 days, reflecting moderate sensitivity to interest rate movements. The unit holding pattern reflected moderate concentration, with the top 10 investors accounting for ~58.1% of total holdings, indicating a moderate level of potential redemption pressure. In terms of performance, the Fund delivered a return of 10.8% as of Jun’26, compared to the benchmark return of 11.4% and peer average return of 13.0%, indicating underperformance relative to both its benchmark and comparable funds.
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 552.3bln as of Jun '26, the Company manages a diversified portfolio of twenty-six open-end mutual funds, four voluntary pension schemes, and one exchange-traded fund (ETF).