ABSTRACT
Credit rating agencies are among the most puzzling institutions of our times. Formerly largely unknown, the raters have become a focus of political and media attention since the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98, as people have repeatedly questioned the accuracy and timeliness of their ratings with successive episodes of rating “failure.” The global financial crisis that started in 2007 has greatly heightened these concerns, while the European sovereign debt crisis that started in 2010 has demonstrated the continuing importance of the agencies despite persistent concerns about their competence.1
