NEW YORK - Tuesday, July 19th 2016 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) announced today that it has acquired full ownership of Korea Investors Service (KIS), a leading provider of domestic credit ratings in Korea.

Founded in 1985, KIS serves the domestic capital markets in Korea with credit ratings, research and other services. KIS has been a majority-owned affiliate of Moody’s Investors Service since 2001.

“Moody’s and KIS have had a long-standing and productive partnership, and this deal further solidifies our presence in this important market,” said Robert Fauber, President of Moody’s Investors Service.

KIS Ratings will continue to operate as an independent affiliate of Moody’s Investors Service. Mr. Jae-Hong Lee, Chief Executive Officer of KIS, will continue to lead the company.

“Over the past 15 years, KIS has benefited from the expertise and global perspective provided by our affiliation with Moody’s,” said Mr. Lee. “I look forward to further building the KIS business and serving the Korean market with insightful credit ratings and research.”

Under the terms of the deal, Moody’s will also gain a majority ownership stake in KIS Pricing, a majority-owned subsidiary of KIS and provider of pricing services and analytics for fixed income and other local securities.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed. It is not expected to have a significant impact on Moody’s earnings per share for 2016 and will be funded from international cash on hand.

ABOUT MOODY’S CORPORATION

Moody's is an essential component of the global capital markets, providing credit ratings, research, tools and analysis that contribute to transparent and integrated financial markets. Moody’s Corporation (NYSE: MCO) is the parent company of Moody's Investors Service, which provides credit ratings and research covering debt instruments and securities, and Moody's Analytics, which offers leading-edge software, advisory services and research for credit and economic analysis and financial risk management. The corporation, which reported revenue of $3.5 billion in 2015, employs approximately 10,800 people worldwide and maintains a presence in 36 countries. Further information is available at www.moodys.com.

“SAFE HARBOR” STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995

Certain statements contained in this release are forward-looking statements and are based on future expectations, plans and prospects for Moody’s business and operations that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof, and the Company disclaims any duty to supplement, update or revise such statements on a going-forward basis, whether as a result of subsequent developments, changed expectations or otherwise. In connection with the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, the Company is identifying certain factors that could cause actual results to differ, perhaps materially, from those indicated by these forward-looking statements. Those factors, risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the current world-wide credit market disruptions and economic slowdown, which is affecting and could continue to affect the volume of debt and other securities issued in domestic and/or global capital markets; other matters that could affect the volume of debt and other securities issued in domestic and/or global capital markets, including credit quality concerns, changes in interest rates and other volatility in the financial markets; the level of merger and acquisition activity in the US and abroad; the uncertain effectiveness and possible collateral consequences of US and foreign government initiatives to respond to the current world-wide credit market disruptions and economic slowdown; concerns in the marketplace affecting Moody’s credibility or otherwise affecting market perceptions of the integrity or utility of independent credit agency ratings; the introduction of competing products or technologies by other companies; pricing pressure from competitors and/or customers; the level of success of new product development and global expansion; the impact of regulation as an NRSRO, the potential for new US, state and local legislation and regulations, including provisions in the Financial Reform Act and regulations resulting from that Act; the potential for increased competition and regulation in the EU and other foreign jurisdictions; exposure to litigation related to Moody’s rating opinions, as well as any other litigation, government and regulatory proceedings, investigations and inquiries to which the Company may be subject from time to time; provisions in the Financial Reform Act legislation modifying the pleading standards, and EU regulations modifying the liability standards, applicable to credit rating agencies in a manner adverse to credit rating agencies; provisions of EU regulations imposing additional procedural and substantive requirements on the pricing of services; the possible loss of key employees; failures or malfunctions of Moody’s operations and infrastructure; any vulnerabilities to cyber threats or other cybersecurity concerns; the outcome of any review by controlling tax authorities of the Company’s global tax planning initiatives; the outcome of those Legacy Tax Matters and legal contingencies that relate to the Company, its predecessors and their affiliated companies for which Moody’s has assumed portions of the financial responsibility; exposure to potential criminal sanctions or civil remedies if the Company fails to comply with foreign and US laws and regulations that are applicable in the jurisdictions in which the Company operates, including sanctions laws, anti-corruption laws and local laws prohibiting corrupt payments to government officials; the impact of mergers, acquisitions or other business combinations and the ability of the Company to successfully integrate acquired businesses; currency and foreign exchange volatility; the level of future cash flows; the levels of capital investments; and a decline in the demand for credit risk management tools by financial institutions; and other risk factors as discussed in the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 and in other filings made by the Company from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.     

Contacts

Moody’s Corporation

Salli Schwartz, +1-212-553-4862

Global Head of Investor Relations and Communications

sallilyn.schwartz@moodys.com

Hector Lim, +61 2 9270 8141

Vice President, Communications

hector.lim@moodys.com

Michael Adler, +1-212-553-4667

Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications

michael.adler@moodys.com

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