Credit rating agencies (CRAs) assess the creditworthiness of debt issuers in financial markets. They are private companies, and their ratings are judgments about the likelihood of timely and full repayment of debt by an issuer. A rating is not an investment recommendation, but rather an opinion regarding the creditworthiness of a financial product or an issuing bank, government, supranational, or sub-national entity.

In recent years, CRAs have gained a stature in the bond markets that far exceeds their original design. This book introduces and explores the complex world of the credit rating industry: how it works, how it has evolved, what role it played in the financial crisis, and how it is regulated.

The author demonstrates that, as integral components of global financial capitalism, CRAs have social and political significance that extends far beyond finance, into areas such as transportation, infrastructure, education, and health, and their impact is indicative of the increasing financialization of our world.