S&P president resigns

[Moonlight Graham]

The president of Standard & Poor's is stepping down, an announcement coming only weeks after the rating agency's unprecedented move to strip the United States of its AAA credit rating.

The McGraw-Hill Cos., the parent of S&P, said late Monday that Deven Sharma will be replaced by Douglas Peterson, now the chief operating officer of Citibank N.A., Citigroup Inc.'s chief banking arm.

Sharma, 55, "was ready for new challenges" after helping S&P separate its data, pricing and analytics business from its ratings business, McGraw-Hill said in a statement.

...

McGraw-Hill's statement did not mention of the Aug. 5 downgrade that sent shock waves through global financial markets and was sharply criticized by the Obama administration, which said the agency's analysis was fundamentally flawed. Other major rating agencies have maintained their AAA ratings on the U.S.

It also did not refer to recent reports that the Justice Department was investigating whether S&P improperly rated dozens of mortgage securities in the years leading up to the financial crisis in 2008. Those reports sent McGraw-Hill's shares tumbling last week.

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I'm wondering what the actual reason for his stepping down is?...that is, if he "stepped down" at all or if he was forced out and only "stepped down" to save face for he and the Co. Or was it something else?

[jbg]

I'm wondering what the actual reason for his stepping down is?...that is, if he "stepped down" at all or if he was forced out and only "stepped down" to save face for he and the Co. Or was it something else?

Sort of like a seasoned politician wanting to "spend more time with his family"?