Credit Rating Agencies (CRAs) help mitigate this problem of asymmetric information and the dissemination of information by the CRA incidentally makes the regulator's task less onerous. CRAs have also faced a number of criticisms in recent years, especially after the Asian crisis. The independence of ratings has been questioned, especially when ratings are paid for their services.
Questions are also raised about the accountability of CRAs, the potential for herding by investors and frequent changes in ratings causing volatility. Excessive reliance on CRAs is, under these circumstances to be eschewed and in any case the quality of ratings by CRAs continuously assessed.