Recently, the European Securities and Markets Authority has aimed to reinvigorate its efforts to enforce the increase in competition within the credit rating industry. The Supervisory Provisions aim to explain, in precise detail, the rules and regulations for ‘Sectoral Competent Authorities'...

This article is concerned with assessing just one element of how the Big Three Rating Agencies – Standard & Poor's, Moody's and Fitch – have been able to remain profitable despite their dreadful performance in the lead-up (and arguably since) the recent Financial Crisis; the article argues...

Recently, the leading Credit Rating Agencies vowed to embrace the initiative developed by the ‘Principles for Responsible Investment' organisation to incorporate environmental, social, and governance factors into their ratings in a ‘more systemic way'. In this short note, the focus will be...

With 2016 providing arguably the most politically tumultuous year in recent history, the need for vigilance in the marketplace has never been greater. The proximity to the recent Financial Crisis means that any undeserved leniency now may have dramatic and irreversible effects. In this short...

The establishment of a wave of new regulatory measures against credit rating agencies operating in Russia, in conjunction with pressures emanating from International sanctions, has resulted in an exodus of the established rating agencies, like Moody's and Fitch. In their place, the recently...

Credit rating in China has been, since the 1980s, the domain of domestic credit rating agencies. Now, however, the Chinese Government has allowed a global CRA into its country for the very first time. This raises a number of important questions about how that assimilation may work in reality,...

Purpose: Sigma Ratings is a new entrant to the AML marketplace and seeks to alleviate some of the inherent flaws within the AML regime. This paper exists to examine those flaws and ask whether Sigma may succeed in this bourgeoning marketplace.Design/Methodology: This paper is based upon a...

This article asks whether the Credit Rating Agencies may be able to play a greater role in the approach taken by companies with regards to explaining why they deviate from Corporate Governance Codes. With it being identified that there is a potential issue with companies passively disclosing why...

In this next instalment of the series examining the responses to the ‘status quo' of the credit rating sector, the focus of this article will be on the ever-increasing option being offered by Scope Ratings, a European firm that is aiming to represent a viable alternative by way of merging...

This short note discusses the importance of the decision facing the U.S. Justice Department in the near future regarding whether or not to take action against Moody's Corp. for its actions in the lead-up to the Financial Crisis. Having already fined Standard & Poor's a record $1.375 billion for...