Press Release

VIS Assigns Initial Broker Fiduciary Rating to Alpha Capital (Pvt) Limited

Karachi, December 1, 2023: VIS Credit Rating Company Ltd. (VIS) has assigned initial Broker Fiduciary Rating of ‘BFR3’ to Alpha Capital (Pvt) Limited. Rating of BFR3 denotes adequate fiduciary standards. Outlook on the assigned rating is ‘Stable’.


Incorporated in November 1994, Alpha Capital is a private limited company principally engaged in the brokerage of shares, commodities, money market instruments and consultancy. The company is a corporate member of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) Limited and Pakistan Mercantile Exchange Limited (PMEX). Catering to retail and institutional clients, the company provides online and assisted trading services from its registered offices in Karachi. The company holds Trading Rights Entitlement Certificate (TREC) granted by Pakistan Stock Exchange Limited (PSX) to provide Trading & Self Clearing Services. External auditors of the company are Crowe Hussain Chaudhury & Co. Chartered Accountants. External auditors belong to category ‘A’ on the approved list of auditors published by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

The rating signifies sound ownership & governance, sound management & client services. Whereas, business & financial stability, internal control & regulatory compliance is considered adequate.

Assigned rating signifies the Company’s governance framework. ACPL’s board is comprised of 5 members constituting two board level committees However, inclusion of certified and independent members on the board may strengthen overall governance and control framework. Moreover, disclosure levels of the Company are considered sound. Rating also incorporates Company’s sound management and client servicing procedures. Provision of web based trading services and research resources are noted positively. The Company’s internal control and regulatory compliance framework is considered adequate, however, enhancing the scope of policies and procedures may provide impetus to the internal control framework of the Company. Likewise, establishing a separate risk management department may provide further strength to the control framework.

Assessment of financial profile of the Company depicts deterioration of the Company’s earning profile. Core brokerage income of the Company declined owing to subdued market activity during FY23. Decline in recurring revenues along with increased operational expenses worsened the cost to income ratio. Liquidity profile remained adequate, however the Company’s liquid capital balance depicts a declining trend on timeline basis. Capitalization indicators also remained manageable with zero gearing and leverage at 0.79x in FY23 (FY22 0.71x). Going forward, augmentation of the revenue base, improvement in operational efficiency, liquidity profile and the Company’s equity base will remain important for the rating.


For further information on this rating announcement, please contact Dr. Jahanzaib Alvi (Ext: 104) or the undersigned (Ext: 106) at (021) 35311861-64 or email at info@vis.com.pk.



Muhammad Bilal Aftab
Director

Applicable Rating Criteria: Broker Fiduciary Ratings 2021:
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/BrokerFiduciary012021.pdf

VIS Rating Scale
https://docs.vis.com.pk/docs/VISRatingScales.pdf

Information herein was obtained from sources believed to be accurate and reliable; however, VIS Credit Rating Company Limited (VIS) does not guarantee the accuracy, adequacy or completeness of any information and is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information.VIS , the analysts involved in the rating process and members of its rating committee do not have any conflict of interest relating to the rating(s)/ranking(s) mentioned in this report.VIS is paid a fee for most rating assignments. This rating/ranking is an opinion and is not a recommendation to buy or sell any securities. Copyright 2023 VIS Credit Rating Company Limited . All rights reserved. Contents may be used by news media with credit to VIS .