List of Credit Rating Agencies in India and Headquarters – Download PDF

• CRISIL is India’s first credit rating agency, with a market share of more than 60%.
• It was promoted by ICICI Ltd, UTI, and other financial institutions.
• In 1988, it commenced its operations.
• In 1995, in partnership with National Stock Exchange, CRISIL developed CRISIL500 Equity Index.
• CRISIL’s businesses operate from 8 countries: the USA, Argentina, Poland, the UK, India, China, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
• In 1996, it allied with the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Ratings Group and in the next year, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Ratings Group acquired 9.68% shares in it.

• It is India’s second credit rating agency.
• It was promoted by the Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI), and other leading financial/investment institutions.
• ICRA originally named as Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India Limited (IICRA India) is independent and professional investment information and credit rating agency in India.

• CARE is India’s third Credit Rating Agency.
• It commenced its operations in April 1993.
• It was mainly promoted by IDBI along with Canara Bank, UTI, and other financial and lending institutions.
• It offers credit ratings in the following areas: Debt ratings, Bank loan ratings, Issuer ratings, Corporate governance, Recovery ratings, Financial sector, and Infrastructure ratings.

4. Acuite Ratings & Research (earlier SMERA Ratings Limited)

Established in 2011, earlier known as Small Medium Enterprises Rating Agency Of India Limited is now known as Acuite Rating & Research. It has two key divisions – Bond Ratings and SME Ratings. It evaluates the credibility of existing MSMEs (Micro, Small, and Medium enterprises).

• SMERA is a credit rating agency in India that was set up for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME).
• It was established in 2005 by SIDBI, Dun & Bradstreet Information Services India Private Limited (D&B), and some chief banks in India.
• In 1999, SMERA has been registered under the Securities and Exchange Board of India and is only the sixth rating agency in India to rate issues such as IPO, bonds, commercial papers, security receipts, and others.
• As an external credit assessment institution (ECAI), the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) accredited SMERA to rate bank loan ratings under Basel II guidelines.

• Brickwork Ratings is a credit rating agency in India which was established in 2007.
• It is also accredited by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and empaneled by NSIC.
• It offers Bank Loan, NCD, Commercial Paper, MSME ratings, and grading services.
• It also plays a significant role in the grading of real estate investments, hospitals, educational institutions, tourism, NGOs, IREDA, MFI, and MNRE.
• BWR is responsible for rating bank loans, municipal corporations, a capital market instruments, financial institutions, SME’s and corporate governance ratings.

Formerly known as Fitch Ratings India Pvt. Ltd., determines credit ratings for corporate issuers, financial institutions, managed funds, project finance companies, structured finance companies, and urban local bodies. Headquartered in Mumbai, it also has other branch offices in Ahmedabad, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Pune, and Kolkata.

Founded by former finance professionals, bankers, and administrative services personnel,  Infometrics Valuation and Rating Pvt Ltd is an RBI-accredited and SEBI-registered credit rating agency. It offers an unbiased assessment and evaluation of the creditworthiness of banks, non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), small and medium scale units (SMUs), and large corporates. It aims to reduce any kind of information asymmetry amongst lenders and investors. It has transparency as its core value and thus, endeavors to provide accurate and comprehensive reports and credit ratings to all its clients.