Rating Agencies Are Pressed To Keep Pace With Debt Securities

Now some analysts are wondering if the overburdened ratings agencies are up to assessing the risk of the exploding voumes of such commercial mortgage-backed securities, or CMBS. Over $40 billion in new loans have been securitized and sold already this year, as much as in all of last year. The total volume of CMBS issues in circulation has grown over the past six years to more than $160 billion, bigger than the total equity-market value of all real estate investment trusts. Another $40 billion is expected this year, making the CMBS market the fastest growing sou