The Effect of Ratings Announcements on Firms in Bank-Based Systems

Rating agencies act as intermediaries for investors in evaluating the creditworthiness of borrowers. The role of ratings agencies is particularly crucial in market-based systems, because, in contrast to long-run bank relationships, outside investors are confronted with greater obstacles to in-depth and reliable evaluations of firm credit risk. The financial intermediation in bank-based systems has implications for the role and the focus of credit rating agencies. This study examines the influence of ratings announcements in Germany, one of the premier bank-based systems. During the study period, from January 2000 through June 2014, we examine 189 Standard & Poor’s and 204 Moody’s ratings announcements. Our results show that ratings announcements are less important in the German market than in market-based systems such as the United States.