TOP 10 CREDIT RATING AGENCIES IN WORLD

1. Fitch Ratings Fitch Ratings was founded by John Knowles Fitch on December 24, 1913 in the New York City as the Fitch Publishing Company. It was merged with London-based IBCA Limited in December 1997. The Fitch Group is a jointly owned subsidiary of FIMALAC and Hearst Corporation. The dualheadquartered rating agency Fitch is one of the three nationally recognized statistical rating organizations designated by the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission in 1975. 2. Moodys Investor Service Moodys Investor Service was founded by John Moody in 1909 to produce manuals of statistics pertaining to stocks and bonds and bond ratings. The company was identified as a Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization in 1975 by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. It is the bond credit rating business of the Moodys Corporation, representing the companys traditional line of business and its historical name.

3. Standard & Poors Standard Statistics Bureau was discovered by Luther Lee Blake in 1906 with an aim to provide financial information on the non-rail road companies. In the year 1941, Poor and Standard Statistics merged to become Standard & Poors Corp. In the year 1966, the company was acquired by The McGraw Hill Companies and now includes the financial services division. Its head office is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City.

4. CRISIL CRISIL Ratings pioneered the concept of credit rating in India in 1987. CRISIL rates entire range of debt instruments including bank loans, certificates of deposit, commercial paper, nonconvertible debentures, asset-backed securities, perpetual bonds and partial guarantees. The ratings agency serves lenders, investors, market intermediaries and regulators by improving information availability and providing benchmarks.

5. Japan Credit Rating Agency Ltd Tokyo-based credit rating agency Japan Credit Rating Agency Ltd was founded on April 1, 1985. It is a Japanese financial services company which publishes credit ratings to interested parties, local governments and Japanese companies. This credit rating agency is engaged in the rating of both long-term and temporary debt obligations and other related activities as well.

6. Credit Analysis & Research Ltd Credit Analysis & Research Ltd was established in 1993. CARE is promoted by Unit Trust of India, Canara Bank, Industrial Development Bank of India and other reputed banks and companies dealing with financial services. CARE carries out rating on debt instruments including structured obligations, commercial paper, debentures, fixed deposits and bonds.

7. DBRS Ltd Toronto-based DBRS is a credit rating agency founded in 1976 by its current owner and President Walter Schroeder. It is also the largest rating agency in Canada. DBRS is also one of the 10 Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organizations in the U.S. It is significantly smaller than the market leaders Moodys, Standard & Poors and Fitch Ratings. This credit rating agency has offices in Frankfurt, New York, London, Chicago and Paris.

8. Brickworks Bangalore-based company Brickwork Ratings is a SEBI registered credit rating agency. The founding directors of Brickwork Ratings are Mr. Balasubamanian, Mr. Vivek Kulkarniand Mr. Ravishankar. The focus of Bricworks is on the Indian investment scene as it is completely in tune with Indian businesses, sociopolitical and economic developments, market psychology and Indian investors risk profile.

9. A.M. Best A.M.Best was established in 1899 by Alfred M. Best as an American Credit Rating Agency with offices in London, Washington D.C. and Hong Kong. The main role of the credit rating agency is to rate insurance companies on their ability to pay claims. It also rates the financial instruments like bonds and notes provided by insurance companies.

10. Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India or ICRA is Indias premier financial information services company. It offers credit rating information and professional financial consulting services across India as well as in the Asia-Pacific region through its subsidiaries. ICRA was incorporated on January 16, 1991 as a public limited company and started functioning with effect from September 1, 1991. The ICRA rating services includes credit rating, asset securitization, credit assessment for small and medium industry and evaluation rating of parallel marketers of LPG and kerosene.