• Comment: Tone could still be improved, also has unsourced contentous statements. Nobody (talk) 06:58, 18 September 2024 (UTC)

CareEdge Group
Company typePublic subsidiary
BSE534804
NSECARERATING
IndustryFinancial Services
Founded1993
HeadquartersMumbai, India
Key people
Mehul Pandya (MD & Group CEO).[1]
Sachin Gupta (ED)
Revati Kasture (ED)
ServicesCredit Ratings, Analytics, Consulting, Research, ESG
RevenueIncrease 251 crore (US$30 million) (December 2023)[2]

CareEdge Group (formerly known as CARE Ratings) is an Indian analytical company that provides services in credit ratings, research, risk management solutions, and advisory services. It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

History

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CareEdge Group was established in 1993 as Credit Analysis and Research Limited. Over the years the parent company in the group CARE Ratings Limited (CareEdge Ratings) expanded its service offerings into areas like corporate governance ratings, value creation studies, SME ratings, mutual fund ratings, and infrastructure project assessments.

Key milestones include:

  • 1997: Launched India's first loan rating product
  • 2001: Founding member of the Association of Credit Rating Agencies in Asia (ACRAA)
  • 2007: Executed agreements with banks to provide Basel II ratings
  • 2011: Acquired 75% stake in risk advisory firm Kalypto Risk Solutions (now CARE Analytics)
  • 2024: Unveiled sovereign rating methodology.[3]

CareEdge has international subsidiaries in Mauritius (CARE Ratings Africa), South Africa, and Nepal to offer ratings and advisory services in those regions.

Credit Ratings

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CareEdge provides credit ratings services across sectors like manufacturing, infrastructure, financial services, structured finance and more. It rates various debt instruments, bank facilities, IPOs and has developed methodologies for areas like urban local bodies, ESCOs, REITs/InvITs.

In March 2024, CareEdge Ratings upgraded Punjab National Bank to Care AA+ (Stable), citing improving asset quality.[4]

Research and Advisory

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Through subsidiaries like CARE Analytics and CARE Advisory, CareEdge offers services in areas like risk management, IFRS implementation, financial restructuring, business intelligence and training.

Sovereign Ratings

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In 2024, CareEdge unveiled its sovereign rating methodology to assess the creditworthiness of sovereign debt issuers globally. It plans to provide sovereign ratings after receiving necessary approvals.[5] In 2024 the African Peer Review Mechanism and Care Ratings (Africa) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate in developing credit rating standards for Africa.[6] The Indian government has been supportive: In late 2023, government economic advisor V. Anantha Nageswaran published a paper calling for reforms in the way that credit ratings agencies assign sovereign ratings. In the paper, Nageswaran, along with his co-author, Rajiv Mishra stated that, the global ratings agencies risked "sowing suspicion about ... discriminatory intent". The paper went on to say that "developing countries have seen over 95% of all downgrades despite experiencing milder economic contractions than their advanced economy counterparts."[7]

Involvement in the IL&FS Crisis

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CareEdge Group was one of the credit rating agencies responsible for rating Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services and its subsidiaries: CareEdge, along with ICRA Limited and other rating agencies, continued to assign high ratings to IL&FS group entities despite being aware of their deteriorating financial condition. This resulted in a delay in downgrading IL&FS's debt instruments until after defaults had already begun.[8]

The agency's role in the crisis has been subject to significant scrutiny: An audit conducted by Grant Thornton revealed that IL&FS management had indeed interfered with the rating process, influencing CareEdge and other agencies to maintain favorable ratings. This interference included providing incomplete or incorrect information to avoid downgrades.

As a result, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) imposed penalties on CareEdge and ICRA for lapses in their rating process related to IL&FS.[9]

The IL&FS crisis exposed significant flaws in the credit rating process and the oversight of financial institutions in India. As one of the rating agencies involved, CareEdge Group faced criticism and regulatory action for its role in the crisis. The incident has led to calls for greater transparency and accountability in the credit rating industry to prevent similar occurrences in the future. Like other major rating agencies, CareEdge has faced criticism for potential conflicts of interest in its issuer-pays business model. There have been concerns about the quality and timeliness of some of its ratings during periods of stress.

An independent enquiry into the leadership of Rajesh Mokashi who was the CEO of CareEdge during the time of the crisis revealed that there was no wrongdoing on his part.[10]

Subsequent to the crisis, the company hired an outside CEO, Ajay Mahanjan to take over leadership of the business. In 2022, Mehul Pandya was internally promoted to become CEO of the group.[11][12]

Other key executives include Rajani Sinha (Chief Economist) and Kiran Kavala (Head - Sovereign Ratings), Dinesh Sharma and Revati Kasture. CareEdge is recognized and regulated by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) as one of the leading credit rating agencies in India. It aims to enhance its global footprint and provide diverse analytical services to investors and issuers.

Analytics, Consulting and Sustainability

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Through its subsidiary CARE Analytics and Advisory Pvt Limited, CareEdge offers services in risk management and financial operations of Banks and NBFCs, Advanced Analytics, Risk consulting and Digital Services capabilities. CareEdge Advisory offers services in the areas of ESG & Sustainability Solutions, Industry Research, Corporate Consultancy and Grading Services.

CARE ESG Ratings Limited (CareEdge- ESG) (formerly known as CARE Advisory Research & Training Limited), a wholly owned subsidiary of CARE Ratings Limited received approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to function as a Category I ESG Ratings Provider (ERP).[13][14] Having received the registration under the SEBI (Credit Rating Agencies) Regulations, 1999 on May 2, 2024, CareEdge- ESG will commence its environmental, social and governance (ESG) rating activity

Company structure

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CARE Ratings Limited (Parent Company) - Commenced operations in April 1993. The company went public on 26th December 2012 and is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

Group Companies - As of June 2024, CARE Ratings Ltd operates the following subsidiaries:

  1. CARE Analytics & Advisory Private Ltd- Previously known as CARE Risk Solutions Pvt Ltd, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CARE Ratings and specializing in Analytics, Consulting, Research and Sustainability.
  2. CARE ESG Ratings Ltd- Previously known as CARE Advisory Research and Training Ltd.
  3. CareEdge Global IFSC Ltd
  4. CARE Ratings Africa Pvt Limited- First credit rating agency to be licensed by the Financial Services Commission of Mauritius from May 7, 2015. It has also been recognized by the Bank of Mauritius as an External Credit Assessment Institution (ECAI) since May 9, 2016. CRAF provides credit ratings and related services in Mauritius and has plans to venture into other geographies of Africa.
  5. CARE Ratings South Africa (Pty) Ltd
  6. CARE Ratings Nepal Limited – Incorporated in Kathmandu, Nepal and is the second credit rating agency to be licensed by the Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON)[15] on November 16, 2017[16][17].CRNL provides credit ratings and related services across Nepal. The rating services of CRNL include rating of debt instruments, IPO Grading, Issuer Rating, Bank loans & facilities and related obligations covering a wide range of sectors.

References

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  1. ^ "CARE Ratings Limited Announces Re-Designation of Mehul Pandya from CEO to Group CEO". market screener. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  2. ^ "December 2023 results" (PDF). Care Ratings Limited. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  3. ^ "CareEdge Ratings to assess credit profile of sovereign debt issuers". The Hindu Business Line. 30 Jan 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
  4. ^ Kumar, Shivendra (30 March 2024). "ARE Ratings upgrades PNB Housing Finance's various instruments". The Economic Times. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
  5. ^ "CareEdge Ratings to assess credit profile of sovereign debt issuers". The Hindu Business Line.
  6. ^ "The APRM and CARE Ratings (Africa) Signed a Memorandum of Understanding for Credit Rating Collaboration". African Peer Review Mechanism. 9 March 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
  7. ^ "India's economic adviser calls for review of sovereign ratings methods". Reuters. 22 December 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  8. ^ Roy, Abhirum (21 July 2019). "Rating agencies knew of stress at IL&FS, but gave good ratings: audit". Reuters. Retrieved 17 Sep 2024.
  9. ^ Upadhyay, Jayshree (26 Dec 2019). "Sebi penalizes rating agencies over lapses in IL&FS". Mint. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  10. ^ "Care Edge Ratings: Inquiry into potential misconduct by former top executives not established". BusinessLine. 12 April 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  11. ^ "Ajay Mahajan exits CARE Ratings". Businessline. 2022-04-27. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  12. ^ "Best Advice: 'Don't shy away from challenges,' says Mehul Pandya, MD and CEO of CareEdge". Business Today. 2023-09-21. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  13. ^ "CARE ESG Ratings: Driving Sustainable Growth - SEBI Approval | Angel One". www.angelone.in. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
  14. ^ "SEBI | Registered ESG Rating Providers". www.sebi.gov.in. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
  15. ^ "SEBON". www.sebon.gov.np. Retrieved 2024-06-26.
  16. ^ "Care Rating Nepal gets Sebon's nod". kathmandupost.com. Retrieved 2024-06-26.
  17. ^ "Care Ratings Nepal receives Operating License from SEBON". www.newbusinessage.com. 19 November 2017. Retrieved 2024-06-26.
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CareEdge Group