Tag: CMBS

US CMBS Loan Defaults Leveled Off in 2021 with Pandemic Recovery

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.fitchratings.com/research/structured-finance/us-cmbs-loan-defaults-leveled-off-in-2021-with-pandemic-recovery-17-05-2022

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Excerpt:

US CMBS loan defaults declined significantly in 2021 compared with 2020, as the resumption of economic activity supported a recovery in asset performance and property cash flows from their pandemic lows, says Fitch Ratings in its US CMBS 2021 Loan Default Study. The total annual default rate for Fitch-rated CMBS transactions declined to 0.4% in 2021, down from 3.3% in 2020.

Author(s): Stephanie Duski, Melissa Che, Everett Bruer, Sarah Repucci

Publication Date: 17 May 2022

Publication Site: Fitch Ratings

Judge narrows SEC bond rating lawsuit against Morningstar

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.businessinsurance.com/article/20220106/NEWS06/912347036/Judge-narrows-SEC-bond-rating-lawsuit-against-Morningstar,-SEC-v-Morningstar-Cre

Excerpt:

A U.S. judge on Wednesday narrowed but refused to dismiss a Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit accusing Morningstar Inc. of letting analysts adjust credit rating models for about $30 billion of mortgage securities, resulting in lower payouts to investors.

U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams in Manhattan said the SEC plausibly alleged that Morningstar Credit Ratings failed to provide users with a general understanding of its methodology for rating commercial mortgage-backed securities and lacked effective internal controls over its ratings process.

Author(s): Reuters

Publication Date: 6 Jan 2022

Publication Site: Business Insurance

SEC Sues Morningstar’s Former Credit Ratings Agency

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2021/02/17/sec-sues-morningstars-former-credit-ratings-agency/

Excerpt:

In a rebuke to the SEC lawsuit, Morningstar issued a press release on Feb. 17, saying that MCR “complied with the regulatory requirements in question” while the SEC’s position is “inconsistent with its own rules and … policies” and that the agency has “overstepped its regulatory limitations by imposing requirements that would regulate the substance of credit rating methodologies.”

In an accompanying position paper, Morningstar said that by questioning MCR’s use of qualitative factors in its legacy CMBS ratings model, the SEC is “attempting to dictate the substance of MCR’s rating methodology,” which it is prohibited to do by law. “If the SEC believes additional rules are required — consistent with the analytical independence of a credit rating agency — the agency should go through the rule-making process, not file an action against MCR.”

Author(s): Bernice Napach

Publication Date: 17 February 2021

Publication Site: Think Advisor

SEC Charges Ratings Agency With Disclosure And Internal Controls Failures Relating To Undisclosed Model Adjustments

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2021-29

Excerpt:

he Securities and Exchange Commission today filed a civil action alleging that former credit ratings agency Morningstar Credit Ratings LLC  violated disclosure and internal controls provisions of the federal securities laws in rating commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).

Credit ratings are used by market participants to help evaluate credit risk, price certain securities, and guide the investment decisions of individuals and institutional investors alike.  To promote transparency in the process, the federal securities laws require credit rating agencies to publicly and accurately describe the procedures and methodologies used to determine credit ratings, and to implement effective internal controls to ensure that they follow those procedures and methodologies. 

According to the complaint, in 30 CMBS transactions totaling $30 billion that Morningstar rated from 2015 to 2016, the credit rating agency permitted analysts to make undisclosed adjustments to key stresses in the model that it used in determining the rating for that transaction.  The complaint also alleges that Morningstar failed to establish and enforce an effective internal control structure governing the adjustments for a total of 31 transactions.

Additional link: https://www.sec.gov/litigation/complaints/2021/comp-pr2021-29.pdf

Publication Date: 16 February 2021

Publication Site: SEC