SEC raps ratings agencies

The Securities & Exchange Commission’s second annual report castigates nine registered credit rating agencies, including Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch, for irregularities in ratings decisions and undisclosed conflicts of interest.

To prevent insider dealing, each of the rating agencies was asked to keep forthcoming rating changes under wraps until formal announcement, says an FT report.

Read: Moody’s questions S&P’s rating methods

Some of the many lapses listed in the SEC report include failure to downgrade a European residential mortgage-backed security, inconsistent application of criteria for the ratings of asset-backed securities, and hazy objectivity due to conflicts of interests.

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Moody’s could downgrade U.S.

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.