The disciplining effect of credit default swap trading on the quality of credit rating agencies†

Author(s):  
Samuel B. Bonsall ◽  
Kevin Koharki ◽  
Monica Neamtiu

The article investigates the state of the Eurozone countries’ financial security in the context of the world economic environment globalization. For the purpose of this, financial security is considered in terms of institutional, instrumental, and interdisciplinary dimensions. The subject of research is the tools of the Eurozone countries’ financial security ensuring. The goal is to research the dependence of the financial activity of the euro area countries on the results of credit rating assessments by rating agencies using the credit default swap instrument in the context of the Eurozone countries’ financial security ensuring.The objective is the process of the Eurozone countries’ financial security ensuring in the context of the world economic environment globalization. General scientific methods are used, such as system analysis – to determine the peculiarities of the financial security ensuring,regression analysis - to determine the relationship between the spreads of sovereign credit default swaps and the eurozone credit rating class. The following results are obtained: on the basis of the regression analysis of the spreads of sovereign credit default swaps and the eurozone credit rating classindicators the influence of sovereign credit risk figure on investment attractiveness of the Eurozone countries is determined; the approaches of the credit default swaps usage in the context of the researching of the credit rating impact on the investment attractiveness of the sovereigns are systematized; examination of dependence between credit ratings and sovereign credit default swap spreads is applied as the main research tool. Conclusions: for the sake of the Eurozone countries’ financial security enhancement, the authors offer replacement of the credit ratings of leading credit rating agencies with alternative credit risk indicators : market assessments of credit risk, instruments for internal credit risk assessment and third party valuation, as well as the ways of strengthening the Eurozone’s financial security through the establishment of permanent threat monitoring system and estimation of their quantity and quality variables are suggested in the article.


2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Jacobs Jr ◽  
Ahmet K. Karagozoglu ◽  
Dina Naples Layish

Purpose This research aims to model the relationship between the credit risk signals in the credit default swap (CDS) market and agency credit ratings, and determines the factors that help explain the variation in such signals. Design/methodology/approach A comprehensive analysis of the differences in the relative credit risk assessments of CDS-based risk signals and agency ratings is provided. It is shown that the divergence between credit risk signals in the CDS market and agency ratings is explained by factors which the rating agencies may consider differently than credit market participants. Findings The results suggest that agency credit ratings of relative riskiness of a reference entity do not always correspond with assessments by CDS spreads, as the price of risk is a function of additional macro and micro factors that can be explained using statistical analysis. Originality/value This research is unique in modeling the relationship between the credit risk assessments of the CDS market and the agency ratings, which to the best of the authors' knowledge has not been analyzed before in terms of their agreement and the level of discrepancy between them. This model can be used by investors in debt instruments that are not explicitly CDSs or which have illiquid CDS contracts, to replicate market-based, point-in-time credit risk signals. Based on both market-based and firm-specific factors in this model, the results can be used to augment through-the-cycle credit risk assessments, analyze issues surrounding the pricing of CDSs and examine the policies of credit rating agencies.


Author(s):  
Jongsub Lee ◽  
Andy Naranjo ◽  
Stace Sirmans

Abstract This paper highlights the adverse consequences of sluggish credit rating updates in creating information efficiency distortions and investment anomalies. We first document significant credit default swap (CDS) return momentum yielding 7.1% per year. We further show that cross-market momentum strategies based on information in past CDS performance generates an alpha of 10.3% per year in stocks and 7.3% per year in bonds. These CDS momentum and cross-market effects are stronger among more liquid, informationally rich CDS contracts whose CDS spreads move in anticipation of important, yet slow-moving, credit rating changes.


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