NEW YORK, Oct. 5, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services announced today the appointment of John Scowcroft as Chief Credit Officer.  Based in New York, Mr. Scowcroft reports to John Berisford, Acting President of Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, and is a member of Standard & Poor's Ratings Services' Executive Committee.

In this role, Mr. Scowcroft will oversee the development and approval of principles, procedures and methodologies (collectively, "criteria") used by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services to determine credit ratings.

"We are delighted to welcome John to S&P Ratings Services.  Criteria are at the core of what we offer clients, investors and the marketplace at large.  John will be a key leader in our organization as we further enhance the quality and clarity of our criteria and ensure they continue to be best in class," said John Berisford, Acting President of Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.  "John's deep financial markets experience spanning a range of research, risk management and operational roles and asset classes make him the ideal person to take on this critical role." 

Prior to joining S&P Ratings Services, Mr. Scowcroft led the Enterprise Portfolio Management Group within the Corporate Investment Group at Bank of America, where he worked with various businesses, risk management and the bank's CFO group to set standards and synchronize data, models and reports for a consolidated balance sheet view of the bank's economic position. 

Previously, Mr. Scowcroft served in a number of senior roles at Morgan Stanley, including as Senior Relationship Manager covering the insurance industry, manager of Mortgage Research, Insurance Strategies and Fixed Income Indices, and Risk Strategist.  He has also worked as a Partner in the Risk Management Practice at Oliver Wyman, as a Partner at Houlihan Valuation Advisors, as an equity analyst and Chief Operating Officer at Wasatch Advisors, and as Manager of Mortgage Research and Capital Markets at Merrill Lynch.

A Chartered Financial Analyst, Mr. Scowcroft has an M.B.A. and a Ph.D. in Economics and Finance from the University of Chicago, as well as a B.A. in Finance from the University of Utah. 

SOURCE Standard & Poor's