Using the widely accepted but rarely articulated concept of -rating addiction, this piece aims to examine the recent and concerted entrance of the credit rating agencies into the sustainable finance field against the backdrop of -rating addiction. Once the concept of -rating addiction is positioned, the effects of the addiction can be clearly witnessed by even just a cursory glance at the history of the credit rating agencies, particularly their recent history. On that basis, this article provides a warning for regulators and the field with regards to the potentially negative effect that credit rating agencies can have upon the ever-growing and socially-important sustainable finance sector. Additionally, assessing the aptitude of the agencies in this sector, in comparison to the sector’s utilisation of their products, may provide further evidence of a system addicted to ratings.
