Credit rating is nothing but arriving at a logical prediction of the regularity and the magnitude of the prospective cash flow of the “issuer” of a security against the servicing obligations and the repayment to the investor during the tenure. In other words, it is a system, which makes clear to the investor that the credit or default risk is associated with the investment.

At the cross roads, as I waver, With the question which to savor, Looms a board upon a post, Greeting me like a host, Steering me towards the east, Where I have a princely feast.

Little trickles of water that individually cannot stir a small thing as a blade of grass, can turn even colossal turbines generating tremendous power and energy, if only they are made to flow together to form a gigantic cascade. It is the channelized strength that achieves this incredible feat. Similar is the effect in the financial markets. Investors, many of them small and some of them institutional, contribute their own outlay, all of which together swell into a large capital, setting the gigantic cogwheels of economy spin towards productivity and progress.

In an organized and growing economy, though this activity is being catalyzed to some extent by the intermediaries who are dwindling now in number in the wake of disintermediation trend, a good majority of investors themselves look for adequate information for a decision on parting with their investible resources. They look for impregnable safety as well as steady, weighty returns. It would therefore, vital for the investor to obtain such information and subject it to such a processing where the investor is in a position to arrive at a realistic assessment of the dependability of the investment avenues, to assure safety and to provide the expected return. In other words, the investors, whether individuals or institutions, need to be apprised of the level of risks they would face in each investment and also to be guided in the light of such perceived risks. Here steps the friend, philosopher and guide for the investors, namely, the “Credit Rating Agency”.

Treasury Management Magazine, Credit Rating, Credit Rating Agency, Financial Markets, CRISIL, Credit Rating and Information Services of India Ltd., CARE, Credit Analysis and Research Limited, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, ICAI, Financial Experts, Debt-Equity, Credit Obligations, Asset-liability Management, Management Policies, Government Policies, Structured Obligations, International Agencies.