| Author |
| El Daher, Samir | 1998 |
| Number of Pages: | 7 |
| Full Text |
| Credit Ratings - An Introduction (and the Case of Sub-Sovereign Ratings) |
Abstract |
| In providing independent opinions to investors as to the credit quality of debt issuers, credit ratings have |
| become important parameters in market acceptance and pricing of debt. Ratings are now viewed as easily |
| usable tools for differentiating credit quality by both individual investors ill-equipped to assess credit risk, and |
| institutional investors often required to hold instruments of given credit categories in their portfolio. This |
| introductory note reviews the key definitions and features of credit ratings and the bases on which ratings are |
| assigned. It briefly addresses the correlations between credit quality and default rates, and outlines some of |
| the criteria underpinning sub-sovereign credit assessments in emerging and developing economies. |