credit rating

American  

noun

1. a classification of credit risk based on investigation of a customer's or potential customer's financial resources, prior payment pattern, and personal history or degree of personal responsibility for debts incurred.

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credit rating British  

noun

1. an evaluation of the creditworthiness of an individual or business enterprise

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credit rating Cultural  

1. An evaluation of the financial trustworthiness of an individual, firm, or government.

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Etymology

Origin of credit rating

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

Those who lose out might be at risk of downgrades to their credit ratings if their future cash flow doesn’t keep up with debt they have issued.

From The Wall Street Journal

Your friend has learned a valuable lesson about putting his own credit rating on the line by cosigning a loan.

From MarketWatch

Earlier this month, S&P Global Ratings downgraded China Vanke’s credit rating further into junk territory, to CCC from B-minus, saying the company’s financial commitments appear to be unsustainable.

From The Wall Street Journal

Other commentators argue that oil and gas extraction from Vaca Muerta is being held back from reaching its full potential because Argentina's bad credit rating is putting off international investors.

From BBC

S&P Global assigned Strategy a B- issuer credit rating with stable outlook in October.

From Barron's