S&P Launches CreditModel 2.0 Offering Greater Coverage and Transparency in the Unrated Universe

NEW YORK, April 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Standard & Poor's Valuations and Risk Services, a leading provider of research and analytical tools for market professionals, today announced the launch of a suite of significant enhancements to its CreditModel 1.0, a risk management solution that enables users to determine a credit score for medium to large corporations in North America, Europe and Japan. CreditModel 2.0 offers greater accuracy, explanatory power and transparency given its reliance on a variety of industry specific models.  The result is a solution that enables users to use credit scoring to gain a competitive advantage in global markets and to enable granular credit driven decision making.

Since 1998, CreditModel has allowed users to efficiently perform a number of important credit research functions, providing the ability to determine a credit score for a single company or numerous companies in a portfolio, efficiently screen new borrowers, identify marginal credits for more intensive review, benchmark internal credit ratings against a globally recognized standard, and more. With average probabilities of default readily mapped to each CreditModel 2.0 scores, users can obtain a reliable and empirically based quantification of credit risk.

Among the CreditModel 2.0's enhancements are expanded geographic coverage, greater methodological transparency and intuitiveness, and improved navigation logic for model selection. One of the most salient new features includes the ability to run user defined scenario analysis on fundamental data.  CreditModel 2.0 also includes a sensitivity ranking of financial inputs in the order and magnitude of how much they impact the results.

"With this launch, CreditModel 2.0 becomes a fully integrated component of S&P's new Analytic Platform, which includes CreditPro, our industry leading application  providing historical default and  recovery data, rating information and transition statistics," said Silvina Aldeco-Martinez, Global Product Manager for CreditModel. "Credit Model 2.0 has been fully revamped and utilizes industry leading analytical and statistical methodology to provide accurate and granular risk estimations. The direct link to CreditPro also allows quantification of empirical corporate credit risk in multiple industry/geographical contexts."

Standard & Poor's CreditModel 2.0 is the optimal tool for credit scoring and to undertake user driven stress testing analysis for both publicly traded and privately owned firms with revenues of at least $50 million (Yen 10 billion for Japanese firms and Euro 50 million). The significantly enhanced methodology, powering best in class credit scoring is shaped by Standard & Poor's research and development married with our experience and views of credit risk in specific industries and in specific regions. The models weigh each input in the context of the other inputs, and also recognize non-linear relationships utilizing unique, but industry proven modeling techniques. For more information or to view S&P CreditModel 2.0, visit http://www.standardandpoors.com/products-services/QCM/en/us.

The credit-related analyses, including ratings, of Standard & Poor's and its affiliates are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or to make any investment decisions. Ratings, credit-related analyses, data, models, software and output therefore should not be relied on when making any investment decision. Standard & Poor's opinions and analyses do not address the suitability of any security. Standard & Poor's does not act as a fiduciary or an investment advisor.

About Standard & Poor's

Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE:MHP), is the world's foremost provider of independent credit ratings, indices, risk evaluation, investment research and data. With offices in 23 countries and markets, Standard & Poor's is an essential part of the world's financial infrastructure and has played a leading role for 150 years in providing investors with the independent benchmarks they need to feel more confident about their investment and financial decisions. For more information, visit www.standardandpoors.com.

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SOURCE Standard & Poor's