SEC issues warning to ratings firms

Daily news headlines

Regulator to push for more transparency of CRA ratings methodology

WASHINGTON, DC – The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is putting pressure on credit rating agencies (CRAs) such as Moody's, Standard & Poor's and Fitch, over their valuations of complex financial products. According to sources contacted by Bloomberg, the SEC might recommend that the firms be barred from advising banks on how to attain AAA ratings on asset-backed securities in a meeting to be held in Washington, DC on Wednesday June 11.

In a bid to improve transparency, the agency is also expected to propose that CRAs should be legally obliged to publish all the criteria concerning each individual rating.

This is the latest in a series of suggested reforms for the rating agencies following concerns that their triple-A rating of certain securities related to subprime assets exacerbated the crisis and contributed to the multi-billion dollar writedowns suffered by many global banks.

Only users who have a paid subscription or are part of a corporate subscription are able to print or copy content.

To access these options, along with all other subscription benefits, please contact info@risk.net or view our subscription options here: http://subscriptions.risk.net/subscribe

You are currently unable to copy this content. Please contact info@risk.net to find out more.

Stemming the tide of rising FX settlement risk

As the trading of emerging markets currencies gathers pace and broader uncertainty sweeps across financial markets, CLS is exploring alternative services designed to mitigate settlement risk for the FX market

You need to sign in to use this feature. If you don’t have a Risk.net account, please register for a trial.

Sign in
You are currently on corporate access.

To use this feature you will need an individual account. If you have one already please sign in.

Sign in.

Alternatively you can request an individual account here