RATING ACTION:
On September 19, 2025, CariCRIS reaffirmed the Issuer/Corporate Credit Ratings assigned to VM Investments Limited and its subsidiary (VMIL or the Group) at CariBBB (Local Currency Rating) on the regional rating scale, and jmBBB+ (Foreign Currency Rating) and jmA- (Local Currency Rating) on the Jamaica national scale. A stable outlook was maintained.
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RATING SENSITIVITY FACTORS:
Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to an improvement in the Ratings and/ or Outlook include:
- Expansion of the Group’s product and service offerings and/or improvements in net interest spreads leading to a sustained increase in return on earning assets (ROEA) to 4% or more for 2 years
- An improvement in the credit rating of the Government of Jamaica (GoJ)
- An improvement in the credit risk profile of the Group’s parent Company, VMFG
- An improvement in the tangible net worth (TNW) to total assets ratio to 10%
- An improvement in the gearing ratio to 7 times
Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to a lowering of the Ratings and/ or Outlook include:
- Deterioration in VM Wealth Management Limited’s (VMWM) total capital to total assets ratio to 7.5% or lower
- A deterioration of VMWM’s capital base to risk-weighted assets ratio to 12.5% or lower
- A lowering of the credit rating of the GoJ
- Reduction in ROEA of VMIL to 1% or less for 1 year
- A deterioration of profit after tax (PAT) by 25% or more in 2025 will lead to the lowering of the earnings risk rating
- VMIL has a return on assets (ROA) ratio of less than 1% or an Interest Coverage Ratio of less than 1.5 times for more than 3 months
Analysts’ Contact Info:
Keith Hamlet
Mobile: 1-868-487-8356
E-mail: khamlet@caricris.com
Maxwell Gooding
E-mail: mgooding@caricris.com
info@caricris.com
www.caricris.com
Disclaimer: CariCRIS has taken due care and caution in the compilation of data for this product. Information has been obtained by CariCRIS from sources which it considers reliable. However, CariCRIS 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. No part of this report may be published / reproduced in any form without CariCRIS’ prior written approval. CariCRIS is also not responsible for any errors in transmission and especially states that it has no financial liability whatsoever to the subscribers/ users/ transmitters/ distributors of this product.