By Aaron Lucchetti
The Wall Street Journal
February 4, 2008 2:41 p.m.
Moody's Corp. is considering a range of changes in the way it rates thousands of mortgage-related bonds and other vehicles hit hard in the credit crunch, including new warning-like labels that underscore the limitations of the rating.
The rating firm published a letter to investors Monday seeking comment on proposals including new labels for its ratings or an overhaul in its system to replace the familiar triple-A to single-C rating scale with a 21-point numerical system.
Moody's goal is to highlight the differences between structured finance vehicles such as mortgage bonds and CDO's, or collateralized debt obligations, and standard fare such as corporate bonds and Treasurys. Regulators in the U.S. and Europe have been pushing Moody's and its competitors -- Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings -- to improve their methodologies after thousands of once highly-rated bonds have been downgraded during the recent housing downturn.
Source: WSJ
Moody's to Consider Changes In Structured-Finance Ratings
