A New Law for the Bond Rating Industry

5 Pages Posted: 9 Apr 2007

See all articles by Lawrence J. White

Lawrence J. White

Stern School of Business, New York University; New York University (NYU) - Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Department of Economics

Abstract

With little fanfare last September, President Bush signed the Credit Rating Agency Reform Act of 2006, in an effort to open what had been a murky, government-sanctioned cartel of bond-rating firms. An optimist could argue that new law will make rater certification more transparent and open the business up to new competitors. A pessimist would respond that the law still gives tremendous power to government-ordained bond raters. Only the passage of time will tell who is correct.

Keywords: Lawrence J. White, A New Law for the Bond Rating Industry, Credit Rating Agency Reform Act, rater certification, transparency, bonds, SEC, securities and investment, NRSRO designation system, ENRON, Sarbanes-Oxley, regulation,

JEL Classification: E42, E43, E49, E62, E66, G28

Suggested Citation

White, Lawrence J. and White, Lawrence J., A New Law for the Bond Rating Industry. Regulation, Vol 30, No. 1, Spring 2007 pp. 48-52, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=978781

Lawrence J. White (Contact Author)

New York University (NYU) - Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Department of Economics ( email )

44 West 4th Street
Suite 9-160
New York, NY NY 10012
United States

Stern School of Business, New York University ( email )

44 West 4th Street
New York, NY 10012
United States
212-998-0880 (Phone)
212-995-4218 (Fax)