Rating Advisor

What is Rating Advisory?

Rating Advisory refers to the credit rating advisory services provided by banks to corporate clients and financial institutions. These services support issuers in their interactions with the major credit rating agencies—Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch Ratings—responsible for assessing the creditworthiness of debt issuers.
Credit rating agencies assign a credit rating, regularly updated based on financial disclosures or specific operations. This rating enables:

  • lenders and investors to assess credit risk and price it accordingly;
  • issuers to access debt markets at the appropriate cost of funding.

 

When does Rating Advisory intervene?

Rating Advisory services can be activated at several key moments in the life of a debt issuer, including:

  • initial rating assignment, generally ahead of a new bond issuance;
  • annual review or renewal of an existing credit rating;
  • financial transactions potentially affecting the rating, such as acquisitions or changes in capital structure.

 

What are the missions of Rating Advisory teams?

Rating Advisory encompasses several complementary responsibilities designed to support the issuer’s rating strategy.

1. Credit quality assessment

  • Analysis of the issuer’s credit fundamentals;
  • Positioning within the rating methodologies and scorecards of the agencies.

2. Recommendations to enhance or preserve the rating

  • Advice on capital structure, financial policy and risk management;
  • Identification of rating drivers and areas for potential improvement.

3. Definition of the rating strategy

  • Recommendation on the choice of rating agency(ies);
  • Preparation of presentation materials for meetings with analysts;
  • Guidance on the communication approach with agencies.

4. Support during interactions with rating agencies

  • Participation in meetings and discussions with analysts;
  • Coordination of information and responses to agency inquiries;
  • Preparation of key messages and analytical arguments.

5. Monitoring methodologies and training

  • Continuous monitoring of methodology updates published by rating agencies;
  • Training or briefing sessions for issuer teams responsible for credit rating topics.

This advisory support helps issuers better understand rating agency expectations, adjust their financial strategy, and optimize their overall financing costs.

 

Expanding Rating Advisory to extra financial (ESG) ratings

Banks increasingly extend rating advisory services to ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) ratings, which assess an issuer’s extra financial performance.
In this context, Rating Advisory teams:

  • evaluate the issuer’s ESG performance;
  • identify areas for improvement,
  • support the development of a credible ESG strategy;
  • align the issuer’s policies and disclosures with ESG rating agency expectations.

This advisory is particularly valuable as investors, regulators and stakeholders place growing emphasis on sustainability performance.

 

Example of a transaction advised by Societe Generale in terms of Rating