The Securities and Exchange Commission extended the ability of asset-backed bond issuers to omit credit ratings from filings to comply with the Dodd-Frank Act.
Pending further notice, the SEC won't recommend enforcement action if an asset-backed issuer doesn't include the ratings disclosure required by the legislation, according to a letter Tuesday from Katherine Hsu, senior special counsel.
Issuers received a six-month reprieve from the legislation in July after ratings firms balked at allowing companies to include their rankings in public documents.
That stemmed from concern that the firms would be vulnerable to lawsuits when underwriters include their assessments in sale documents.
