Assets & Investments
S&P to Defend Credit Rating ‘Puffery’ in Case Over Fraud Charges
Standard & Poor's, getting its first shot in open court at U.S. Justice Department claims it should pay as much as $5 billion in civil penalties, will defend itself by arguing reasonable ...
U.S. Bond Funds Losing $60 Billion Foreshadow Impact of Fed Exit
Investors have pulled about $60 billion from U.S. bond funds since Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke rattled markets by outlining his plan to end the central bank's unprecedented asset ...
Big Insurers, State Regulators Look to Avoid Bank-Like Rules by Federal Reserve
MetLife Inc. and Prudential Financial Inc. have been joined by state regulators challenging the Federal Reserve on how to oversee the biggest insurers under the Dodd-Frank law. The insurers and ...
In Europe’s Low Interest Rate Climate, Insurers Turn to Corporate Debt for Returns
Record-low European interest rates are driving insurers and reinsurers from Axa SA to Munich Re toward corporate and infrastructure debt for better returns. France's three largest life ...
‘Green’ Energy Hasn’t Bloomed For Investors—Yet
The term "green energy" refers to the benign environmental impact of fuel sources, such as wind and solar, that President Barack Obama promoted in a speech on Tuesday. It does not refer to that ...
More Firms Buying Offices in Foreign Countries Rather Than Renting
After decades of renting being the norm, companies with offices in the world's major cities are seeing more financial sense in buying their own buildings, prompted by a mix of cheap debt, stockpiled ...
Bondholders Would Lose More Than $1 Trillion If Yields Spike: BIS
Bondholders in the United States alone would lose more than $1 trillion if yields leap, showing how urgent it is for governments to put their finances in order, the Bank for International Settlements ...
Congressmen Warn Credit Raters Against Repeating History on CDOs
The top executives of Standard & Poor's, Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings were warned by three members of Congress against granting inflated grades to the same type of securities that ...