With the presence of active money and capital markets in the United States, and their ease of access by the best quality borrowers, these credit grades reflect the quality of those with which our banks now normally deal.
They represent the types of borrowers that tend to require the more customized analysis, underwriting and structuring offered by banks that may not be as readily available or as cost-effective through the bond market. The higher magnitude and volatility of default rates in these types of borrowers is well documented from decades of experience in the below-investment grade segment of the bond market.