Using a structural model of default, I derive rating characteristics if ratings are meant tolook ‘through the cycle’ as … opposed to being based on the borrowers’ current condition.The through-the-cycle method, which is employed by most rating … power is low. Though not predictable in the usual sense, rating changesexhibit properties that call for a reconsideration of …

We use dynamic panel analysis to examine whether credit rating agencies achieve what they claim to achieve, namely …

ratios to enforce restrictions on borrowers, there is likely to be increased pressure on rating agencies to cater to borrower … incentives. I investigate whether the explicit use of ratings in contracts affects rating agencies' incentives to issue more …. I examine whether, ceteris paribus, rating agencies are more likely to cater to borrowers when PP agreements use ratings …

their policy of reducing rating volatility, which builds on thethough-the-cycle approach and the avoidance of frequent … rating reversals, is beneficial tobond investors. The results also suggest that widely used statistical measures of rating … qualitymay be insufficient to judge the economic value of rating information in specific contexts. …