Kroll Bond Rating Agency

What Kroll Bond Rating Agency does

Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) is a privately held, globally registered credit rating agency founded in 2008 and headquartered in New York, operating as the primary operating subsidiary of KBRA Holdings, LLC. The company provides independent credit opinions across nine major asset classes—structured finance (ABS, RMBS, CMBS, CLO), corporates, financial institutions, insurance, public finance, sovereigns, project finance, and investment funds—serving both issuers seeking capital-markets access and buy-side institutional investors requiring ratings and analytics. KBRA holds NRSRO status with the SEC (since February 11, 2008) and is registered or recognized by ESMA (EU, 2017), the FCA (UK, 2023), the EBA, PRA, OSC, NAIC, OSFI, USDA RUS, Taiwan FSC, and the GSEs (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac), enabling its ratings to be used for regulated capital purposes across the U.S., Europe, the UK, Canada, and parts of Asia.

The firm's product platform combines transactional credit ratings with a subscription-based analytics suite marketed as KBRA Analytics. Proprietary tools include the REALM loan-level model for residential mortgage analysis, KCP for monthly CMBS surveillance, KFI for financial-market intelligence, the DLD platform and DLD Direct Lending Index covering approximately $1.8 trillion of private credit exposure, Credit Intelligence for private-borrower benchmarking, K-CST for portfolio surveillance, and K-SIM for scenario/default modeling, alongside a Ratings Feed API for programmatic data access. KBRA generates revenue through two primary streams: transaction-based fees paid by issuers for new and surveillance ratings, and recurring subscription revenue from institutional investors and asset managers accessing the analytics platform and research.

KBRA differentiates as a credible alternative to the three dominant rating agencies, with particular depth in structured finance, private credit, and non-traditional asset classes where it has issued more than 80 music royalty ABS ratings since 2020 and grown private ratings of U.S. life-insurer portfolios from $46 billion in 2018 to $481 billion in 2025. Its go-to-market is enterprise and relationship-driven, with direct sales to corporate issuers, structured-finance sponsors, municipalities, and sovereigns, paired with subscription outreach to buy-side clients. Headcount of 501-1,000 supports regulated entities in New York, Dublin, London, and Tokyo, with website, email, social, podcasts, webinars, and industry conferences as supporting channels.

Name

Kroll Bond Rating Agency

Legal name

Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLC

Website

https://kbra.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Kroll Bond Rating Agency is a globally registered NRSRO credit rating agency that provides independent credit opinions and subscription analytics across structured finance, corporates, financial institutions, insurance, public finance, sovereigns, and project finance, serving issuers and institutional investors in the US, Europe, UK, and Japan.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Credit Rating Services

NAICS

Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223)

SIC

Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211), Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Structured Finance Ratings & Surveillance (FSACACAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mortgage-Backed Securities (RMBS/CMBS) (FSACACAB), Securitized Products & Mortgage Credit (RMBS/CMBS/Non-Agency) (FSAHAGAD), Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS) Trading, Market Making & Liquidity Provision (FSALAFAF), Private Credit — Structured Credit (CLOs, ABS, Private Securitizations) (FSAHAJAH)

Keywords

• Credit rating services
• Structured finance ratings
• NRSRO rating agency
• Private credit analytics
• CMBS surveillance

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Credit Rating Services: KBRA provides credit ratings to issuers of debt securities who pay rating fees for the evaluation and ongoing surveillance of their creditworthiness. This includes corporate bonds, asset-backed securities (ABS, RMBS, CMBS), municipal bonds, sovereign debt, and structured credit products.
2. Subscription Analytics Products: KBRA generates recurring subscription revenue from institutional investors, asset managers, banks, and other financial market participants who subscribe to KBRA Analytics platforms including KCP, KFI, DLD, Credit Intelligence, and Ratings Feed for ongoing market intelligence and credit data.
3. Research Publications: KBRA publishes sector-specific research, market commentary, and industry reports available through subscriptions and direct purchases, including the DLD Direct Lending Index tracking default rates in private credit markets.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

KBRA provides independent credit ratings on debt securities and structured finance transactions across asset classes including ABS, RMBS, CMBS, CLO, corporates, financial institutions, insurance, public finance, sovereigns, and project finance. Debt issuers pay transaction-based rating fees for initial credit opinions and ongoing surveillance, while institutional investors and asset managers subscribe to KBRA Analytics platforms (Credit Intelligence, KCP, KFI, DLD, Ratings Feed, KBRA Premium) for credit data, surveillance, and research.

Product overview

KBRA operates as a credit rating agency offering a unified platform of ratings services and analytics products. The core offering consists of credit ratings across multiple sectors (structured finance, corporates, financial institutions, public finance, sovereigns, and insurance), while the KBRA Analytics platform provides supplementary data and analytical tools including Credit Intelligence, KBRA Direct Lending Deals (DLD), KBRA Premium, Ratings Feed, KBRA Credit Profile (KCP), and KBRA Financial Intelligence (KFI). These products serve institutional investors, lenders, and corporate clients seeking credit assessment and market intelligence.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• KBRA Analytics: Premier product platform for high quality data and advanced analytics including Credit Intelligence, KBRA Direct Lending Deals (DLD), KBRA Premium, Ratings Feed, KBRA Credit Profile (KCP), and KBRA Financial Intelligence (KFI)
• K-CST App
• K-SIM

Quantifiable outcome

• DLD Direct Lending Index tracks $1.8 trillion private credit market with default rate data since December 2023
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers26 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and regional.

• Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLCcoreOthersUS operating entity and primary rating agency subsidiary providing credit ratings and analytics services. Registered as NRSRO with SEC since February 11, 2008. Part of KBRA Holdings LLC corporate structure.
• Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe LimitedcoreOthersEuropean entity registered by ESMA effective November 13, 2017. Provides credit ratings within EU jurisdiction. Located in Dublin, Ireland.
• Kroll Bond Rating Agency UK LimitedcoreOthersUK entity registered by FCA effective February 10, 2023 following Brexit. Endorses select KBRA US and KBRA Europe ratings for UK regulatory purposes. Located in London, UK.
• Kroll Bond Rating Japan K.K.regionalOthersJapan-based subsidiary serving the Japanese market. Recognized as a Qualified Rating Agency by Taiwan's FSC.
• KBRA Analytics, LLCcoreOthersSubsidiary providing KBRA's analytics product platform including KCP, KFI, DLD, Credit Intelligence, and Ratings Feed products for subscribers.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• ARC Ratings: ESMA-registered European rating agency focused on bank, corporate, and structured finance ratings — competes with KBRA Europe across EU cross-border mandates.
• Scope Ratings: European-headquartered rating agency registered by ESMA that has been expanding into structured finance and corporate ratings — overlapping with KBRA Europe in EU markets.

Regional players

• Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR): Leading Japanese domestic rating agency overlapping with KBRA Japan in local corporate and structured finance ratings across the Japanese market.
• China Chengxin International Credit Rating: Major domestic Chinese rating agency; relevant Asia-Pacific peer as KBRA Japan builds presence and as cross-border structured finance deals in Asia scale.
• HR Ratings: Mexico-based rating agency recognized by several regulators across Latin America — comparable challenger NRSRO-style franchise in its regional market, useful analog for KBRA's international expansion strategy.

Direct peers

• Moody's: One of the Big Three global NRSROs offering credit ratings across corporate, structured, financial institution, and public finance sectors — the dominant direct competitor to KBRA in virtually every asset class.
• S&P Global Ratings: S&P's rating division is one of the Big Three NRSROs and the primary incumbent KBRA targets for displacement in structured finance, public finance, and corporate credit ratings.
• Fitch Ratings: The third major NRSRO, with comparable coverage across structured finance, corporates, financial institutions, and sovereigns, competing head-to-head with KBRA on most new issuance mandates.
• DBRS Morningstar: Closest analog to KBRA: a challenger NRSRO acquired by Morningstar in 2019, with comparable structured finance and private credit ratings coverage — historically the most direct head-to-head competitor outside the Big Three.
• Egan-Jones Ratings: Smaller NRSRO active primarily in corporate credit ratings; competes with KBRA in mid-market and esoteric issuance, particularly for sponsors seeking alternative rating providers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/krollbondrating
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCXb8Iojcna6AmDJGIEeSndA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kroll-bond-rating-agency-inc
• Facebookfacebook.com/519438554873572

Compliance15 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments2 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kroll Bond Rating Agency