Consider the following statements : 1. In India, credit rating agencies are regulated by Reserve Bank of India. 2. The rating agency popularly known as ICRA is a public limited company. 3. Brickwork Ratings is an Indian credit rating agency. Which of the statements given above are correct ?
- (a) 1 and 2 only
- (b) 2 and 3 only ✓ UPSC's answer
- (c) 1 and 3 only
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
Why the answer is (b)
• Statement 1 is wrong: credit rating agencies in India are registered with and regulated by SEBI under the SEBI (Credit Rating Agencies) Regulations, 1999, not the RBI (the RBI only accredits them for bank-loan ratings).
• Statement 2 is correct: ICRA Ltd, originally Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency, is a public limited company listed on the stock exchanges, majority-owned by Moody's.
• Statement 3 is correct: Brickwork Ratings is a Bengaluru-based Indian credit rating agency (SEBI cancelled its registration in 2022 for lapses).
• Other Indian agencies include CRISIL, CARE, India Ratings and Acuité.
• Hence 2 and 3 only, option (b).
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) 1 and 2 only
- Statement 1 is wrong: SEBI, not the RBI, regulates rating agencies.
- (c) 1 and 3 only
- Statement 1 is wrong; statement 3 is correct.
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
- Statement 1 is wrong, so all three cannot be correct.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2022, held on 5 June 2022. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.