Rating agencies: Role and influence of their sovereign credit risk assessment in the euro area. Monetary dialogue, December 2011

Credit ratings have a huge impact on the access to and costs of funding, regardless of whether the rated entity is a private enterprise or a sovereign borrower. Since the beginning of the financial crisis there has been a vivid and controversial debate about methods, timing and procedures used by these agencies. In this compilation of five notes provided by members of the Monetary Expert Panel of the European Parliament, the role of the rating agencies and their influence on the euro area is discussed in more detail.