RIYADH: Strong financials backed by robust capitalization has helped Saudi Real Estate Refinance Co. improve its credit worthiness as two of the leading agencies have upgraded their ratings for the Public Invest Fund-owned firm. Fitch Ratings upgraded SRC’s long-term issuer default ratings to ‘A+’ from ‘A’ with a ‘Stable’ outlook, following the recent upgrade of the Kingdom’s long-term Issuer Default Ratings to ‘A+’ with ‘Stable’ outlooks, the company said in a press release. SRC is into providing liquidity and sustainable financing solutions for homebuyers in Saudi Arabia as it looks to increase home ownership rates among its citizens. Meanwhile, Moody’s Investor Services has also affirmed SRC’s ‘A2’ long-term issuer ratings and upgraded its outlooks to ‘Positive.’ The agency noted that SRC has a strong capitalization, which is backed by solid asset quality metrics. It added that the company has an important role to play in increasing home ownership among Saudi national citizens. “SRC’s credit upgrades by two of the world’s most influential rating agencies reflect our strong position and the recent positive rating actions for Saudi Arabia connected to the government’s initiatives to transform the Kingdom’s economy,” Fabrice Susini, CEO of SRC, said in a statement. He added that the firm looks forward “to continue raising capital locally and soon internationally on favorable terms to support our continued ability to promote the growth of the Saudi real estate sector and Saudi citizens’ access to homeownership.” A week earlier, the credit rating firm S&P Global assigned SRC an ‘A-’ rating for global credit and a ‘KsaAA’ rating for local credit, both with a stable outlook. It also rated the real estate financing company as ‘A-’ stable, while Moody’s Investors Service rated it as ‘A2-’ stable. SRC and Al Rajhi Bank signed a contract in March, to refinance a portfolio of real estate financing totaling more than SR5 billion ($1.33 billion). According to SRC, the credit rating will support the company’s goals and boost confidence among local, international investors and stakeholders.