The Supervisory Paradox: When Enforcing Trust in Credit Ratings Risks Undermining It
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has imposed a fine of EUR 2.145 million on Moody’s Deutschland GmbH for four breaches of the EU Credit Rating Agencies Regulation (CRA Regulation). According to ESMA, Moody’s Germany failed to provide complete, accurate and up-to-date regulatory data to the European supervisor. Announcing the decision, ESMA Chair Verena…
Recovery Analysis in Transition: Responding to Moody’s Discussion Paper on Corporate Debt Instruments
The recent Moody’s Ratings Discussion Paper on Recovery Analysis for Corporate Debt Instruments represents an important initiative to reassess how recovery expectations should be analyzed in an increasingly complex credit environment. Rather than proposing methodological changes, Moody’s seeks market feedback on six broad areas that influence instrument-level recoveries across speculative-grade issuers:
Why AM Best’s Guide to Best’s Credit Ratings Needs a 2026 Update
An analysis of the October 2023 edition from the perspective of today’s rating environment The October 6, 2023 edition of AM Best’s Guide to Best’s Credit Ratings remains a comprehensive and well-structured explanation of the agency’s rating philosophy, methodologies and governance. It clearly describes the rating process, rating scales, committee procedures, outlooks and modifiers, providing transparency for insurers,…
Different Models, Different Truths: Why Credit Risk Depends on Perspective
In financial markets, disagreements are often interpreted as evidence that one side must be wrong. Yet some of the most important debates in modern finance emerge not from errors, but from fundamentally different ways of looking at the same phenomenon. The recent discussion surrounding structured finance ratings illustrates precisely this tension. In his essay “Rating…
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