Tokyo, March 19, 2020 -- Moody's Japan K.K. has affirmed the A1 long-term
issuers ratings of Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Holdings Co.,
Ltd.'s (MUSHD) and its two subsidiaries, Mitsubishi
UFJ Morgan Stanley Sec. Co., Ltd. (MUMSS) and
MUFG Securities EMEA plc (MUSE). The ratings outlook is stable.
At the same time, Moody's has withdrawn the outlooks on the long-term
issuer ratings of MUSHD, MUMSS and MUSE, and the senior unsecured
ratings of MUSE. Moody's has decided to withdraw these outlooks
for its own business reasons. Please refer to the Moody's Investors
Service's Policy for Withdrawal of Credit Ratings, available on
its website, www.moodys.com.
All affected ratings are listed at the end of this press release.
RATINGS RATIONALE
The A1 long-term issuer ratings of MUSHD and its subsidiaries,
MUMSS and MUSE, are aligned with the ratings of MUSHD's parent,
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (MUFG), at A1/P-1.
The alignment of the ratings reflects Moody's view that MUFG and
its major subsidiaries, including MUFG Bank, Ltd. (A1
stable), Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation (MUTB,
A1 stable) and MUSHD, will benefit from the same level of government
support.
We do not expect the slowdown of the global economy caused by the spread
of the coronavirus to immediately impact the ratings of the three entities
because we assume very high probability of support from MUFG. Any
potential negative impact of the global economic slowdown would affect
these three entities through a change in the rating of the parent.
MUSHD's Ba1 standalone assessment reflects its (1) weak profitability,
(2) low risk appetite, (3) high leverage, (4) moderate level
of pretax earnings volatility, and (5) weak liquidity and funding.
MUSHD's profitability is among the weakest of the rated Japanese
securities firms, reflecting the company's low-risk
business model. Moreover, retail segment profitability for
all Japanese securities firms has been declining due to the Japan's
aging population and a shift among investor to lower-cost online
trading platforms, resulting in lower brokerage commissions.
Senior investors tend to prefer conservative investments, which
typically generate lower fees for brokers. Pretax-earnings
volatility has also increased as a result of declining profitability,
but remains moderate.
MUSHD's risk appetite is low. The company's exposure
to higher-risk assets is modest as a percentage of its tangible
assets. MUSHD operates with high leverage and a limited capital
cushion, with the company's capital tightly controlled by
MUFG, however the company can expect capital support from its parents
in times of need.
MUSHD's liquidity and funding are weak, but adequate considering
the company's low-risk business model and relationship with
MUFG, which it can count on for contingent liquidity and funding.
Factors that could lead to an upgrade
An upgrade of MUSHD's and its subsidiaries' ratings is unlikely,
as their A1 ratings are already at the same level as Japan's A1
sovereign rating.
Factors that could lead to a downgrade
Factors that could result in a downgrade of MUSHD's, MUMSS',
and MUSE's ratings include (1) a downgrade of the sovereign rating,
or (2) a downgrade of MUFG's ratings.
The principal methodology used in these ratings was Securities Industry
Market Makers Methodology (Japanese) published in November 2019.
Please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com
for a copy of this methodology.
Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Holdings Co., Ltd. is an
intermediate holding company with two subsidiaries: (1) Mitsubishi
UFJ Morgan Stanley Sec. Co., Ltd. is a Japanese
domestic securities broker and 60% owned by MUSHD (and the rest
by Morgan Stanley (A3 review for upgrade); (2) MUFG Securities EMEA
plc is a European securities broker and wholly owned by MUSHD.
As of 31 December 2019, MUSHD reported total consolidated assets
of JPY27.3 trillion.
List of affected ratings:
Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Holdings Co., Ltd.
- Long-term issuer rating: affirmed at A1, outlook
withdrawn
- Short-term issuer rating (domestic currency): affirmed
at Prime-1
- Backed senior unsecured MTN (foreign currency): affirmed
at (P)A1
- Backed other short term (foreign currency): affirmed at
(P)Prime-1
- Outlook remains stable
MUFG Securities EMEA plc
- Long-term issuer rating: affirmed at A1, outlook
withdrawn
- Short-term issuer rating (domestic currency): affirmed
at Prime-1
- Backed senior unsecured (foreign currency): affirmed at
A1, outlook withdrawn
- Backed senior unsecured MTN (foreign currency): affirmed
at (P)A1
- Backed subordinate MTN (foreign currency): affirmed at
(P)A2
- Backed commercial paper (foreign currency): affirmed at
Prime-1
- Outlook remains stable
Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Sec. Co., Ltd.
- Long-term issuer rating (domestic currency): affirmed
at A1, outlook withdrawn
- Short-term issuer rating (domestic currency): affirmed
at Prime-1
- Outlook remains stable
REGULATORY DISCLOSURES
For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of
debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures
in relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the
same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant
to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing
ratings in accordance with Moody's rating practices. For ratings
issued on a support provider, this announcement provides certain
regulatory disclosures in relation to the credit rating action on the
support provider and in relation to each particular credit rating action
for securities that derive their credit ratings from the support provider's
credit rating. For provisional ratings, this announcement
provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the provisional
rating assigned, and in relation to a definitive rating that may
be assigned subsequent to the final issuance of the debt, in each
case where the transaction structure and terms have not changed prior
to the assignment of the definitive rating in a manner that would have
affected the rating. For further information please see the ratings
tab on the issuer/entity page for the respective issuer on www.moodys.com.
For any affected securities or rated entities receiving direct credit
support from the primary entity(ies) of this credit rating action,
and whose ratings may change as a result of this credit rating action,
the associated regulatory disclosures will be those of the guarantor entity.
Exceptions to this approach exist for the following disclosures,
if applicable to jurisdiction: Ancillary Services, Disclosure
to rated entity, Disclosure from rated entity.
Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit
rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating
review.
Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to
the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued
the rating.
Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com
for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating.
Shunsaku Sato
VP - Senior Credit Officer
Financial Institutions Group
Moody's Japan K.K.
Atago Green Hills Mori Tower 20fl
2-5-1 Atago, Minato-ku
Tokyo 105-6220
Japan
JOURNALISTS: 81 3 5408 4110
Client Service: 81 3 5408 4100
Graeme Knowd
MD - Banking
Financial Institutions Group
JOURNALISTS: 852 3758 1350
Client Service: 852 3551 3077
Releasing Office:
Moody's Japan K.K.
Atago Green Hills Mori Tower 20fl
2-5-1 Atago, Minato-ku
Tokyo 105-6220
Japan
JOURNALISTS: 81 3 5408 4110
Client Service: 81 3 5408 4100