Today, four European Commission Delegated Regulations establishing regulatory technical standards for credit rating agencies have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union. These technical standards set out:
1.the information to be provided by a credit rating agency in its application for registration to the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA);
2.the presentation of the information to be disclosed by credit rating agencies in a central repository (CEREP) so investors can compare the performance of different CRAs in different rating segments;
3.how ESMA will assess rating methodologies; and
4.the information CRAs have to submit to ESMA and at what time intervals in order to supervise compliance.
The four standards, which complement the current European regulatory framework for credit rating agencies, were developed by the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and endorsed by the European Commission on 21 March. The regulatory technical standards will ensure a level playing field, transparency and adequate protection of investors across the Union and contribute to the creation of a single rulebook for financial services. More information: http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/securities/agencies/index_en.htm
The first 3 regulations will come into force 20 days after their publication today on 20 June 2012. While the fourth RTS will come into force 6 months after its publication in the Official Journal on 30 November 2012.