Moody’s downgrades ADCB to A1

International rating agency Moody’s Investors Service downgraded Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) on Monday to A1 from Aa3, citing the banks “weakening” asset quality, reports Bloomberg.

The bank’s “standalone financial strength has weakened as a result of the rising pace of loan delinquencies and impairments of investments,” John Tofarides, a Moody’s analyst based in Dubai, wrote in an e-mailed statement late yesterday.

The rating agency expects “the already weakening operating environment in Dubai and Dubai World’s recent restructuring request to continue to weigh on the bank’s loan quality and likely profitability in the foreseeable future.”

ADCB announced earlier this year it is owed AED2.24 billion by troubled Saudi firms Saad Group and Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi & Bros. Co.