Publicly, Wall Street Loves Equifax. Privately, Angst is Growing
- Internal bank ratings on credit fall to speculative grade
- Lenders stick with the company after massive data breach
A monitor displays Equifax Inc. signage on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., on Friday, Sept. 15, 2017. Rediscovering their love for U.S. stock funds, investors added the most money since June during the past week, as the Trump administration plotted strategy for pushing a tax overhaul and the S&P 500 rose to a record.
Photographer: Michael Nagle/BloombergWhile Wall Street stock analysts insist that Equifax Inc. will rebound from its troubles, banks that lend to the beleaguered credit-rating firm are taking a harder line.
In the weeks after the company disclosed a massive consumer data breach, some lenders have downgraded their internal assessment of Equifax to a level reserved for junk-rated borrowers. That’s based on private default estimates that six banks shared with Credit Benchmark, a firm that compiles this data from lenders anonymously.