American credit rating agency Fitch Ratings have confirmed a BB- credit rating for Inter, and removed the club from the Ratings Watch Negative (RNW) list.
This is confirmed by the agency on their official site, where they outline reasons why the financial situation at the Nerazzurri has improved but still has some distance to go.
The Nerazzurri’s financial issues in recent years have been widely reported, but the confirmation of the BB- rating and removal from the RNW reflect that the club are moving in the right direction.
Two key issues that have come up at the club have been lowering of revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic and inability to pay player wages, and Fitch note that on these matters the club have stabilized their situation.
The agency expects that the Nerazzurri will be able to meet their debt obligations in the coming years, a crucial indicator that the situation is not expected to get worse and that the club can begin rebuilding to a position of financial strength.
However, the agency also notes that the cash flow situation at Inter is likely to remain negative for a number of reasons beyond the club’s control.
Foremost among these are the fact that the wage bill could still remain high with the club having difficulties shifting players on high wages (which can be seen in the reported transfer sagas around the exits of players such as Radja Nainggolan, Arturo Vidal, and Joao Mario) and the continued uncertainty on what stadium revenues will look like over the next season with pandemic concerns still looming.
