Home › Circulars › RBI/2011-12/499

Brickwork Ratings Now Approved for Capital Adequacy Risk Weighting

No longer current — withdrawn, no replacement on file yet
Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2011-12/499 · issued 13 Apr 2012 · ~1 min read
Quick answerRBI has added Brickwork Ratings India Pvt. Ltd. as a fifth accredited credit rating agency for risk weighting banks' claims under Basel II. Banks can now use Brickwork's long-term and short-term ratings for capital adequacy purposes, with the same rating-risk weight mapping as existing agencies.

What changed

Previously, only four domestic credit rating agencies (CARE, CRISIL, FITCH India, ICRA) were accredited for risk weighting banks' claims. RBI has now added Brickwork Ratings India Pvt. Ltd. as an additional eligible agency. The rating-risk weight mapping for Brickwork's ratings will be identical to that of the other four agencies.

What it means for you

Banks gain more flexibility in sourcing credit ratings for capital adequacy calculations, potentially reducing concentration risk from relying on fewer agencies. This may also increase competition among rating agencies, possibly leading to more timely and diverse credit assessments. Lenders should update their internal systems to include Brickwork's ratings in risk-weighting processes.

Historical instruction — do not use for current compliance. This is what was required at the time; it no longer reflects current RBI requirements. If no replacement rule is linked above, that only means none is recorded on our register yet — it does not prove no later applicable rule exists. Confirm on the official RBI source below.

What banks were required to do at the time

Who it affects

All scheduled commercial banks (excluding Local Area Banks and RRBs), Credit risk management teams, Capital adequacy and Basel II compliance teams

❓ Common questions

Regulatory timeline

Built from our lineage records — each fact carries its provenance; missing history simply is not shown (never guessed).

Can we use Brickwork ratings for all types of claims?

Yes, for risk weighting claims for capital adequacy purposes under the Standardised Approach of Basel II, subject to the same rating-risk weight mapping as other accredited agencies.

Does this change the risk weights for existing ratings?

No. The risk weights for Brickwork's ratings are mapped identically to those of CARE, CRISIL, FITCH India, and ICRA. Only the list of eligible agencies has expanded.

📜 This document’s life story (1 recorded event, each backed by RBI’s own words)
Repealed by RBI/2025-26/100 — Consolidation of Regulations — Withdrawal of circulars (28 Nov 2025)
RBI’s words: “Official withdrawal register entry #1357: DBOD.No.BP.BC.92/21.06.007/2011-12 — "Prudential Guidelines on Capital Adequacy and Market Discipline - New Capital Adequacy Framework (NCAF) - Eligible Credi”
📜 Read the original circular — full text as issued by RBI
RBI/2011-12/499 DBOD.No.BP.BC 92 /21.06.007/2011-12 April 13, 2012 The Chairman / CMD / MD / CEO All Scheduled Commercial Banks (Excluding Local Area Banks and Regional Rural Banks) Dear Sir, Prudential Guidelines on Capital Adequacy and Market Discipline- New Capital Adequacy Framework (NCAF) - Eligible Credit Rating Agencies - Brickwork Ratings India Pvt. Ltd. (Brickwork) Please refer to the Master Circular DBOD.No.BP.BC.11/21.06.001/2010-11 dated July 1, 2011 on 'Prudential Guidelines on Capital Adequacy and Market Discipline - New Capital Adequacy Framework (NCAF)'. 2. In terms of para 6 of the circular, four domestic credit rating agencies viz. CARE, CRISIL, FITCH India and ICRA have been accredited for the purpose of risk weighting the banks' claims for capital adequacy purposes. The long term and short term ratings issued by these domestic credit rating agencies have been mapped to the appropriate risk weights applicable as per the Standardised Approach under the Basel II Framework. 3. It has now been decided that banks may also use the ratings of the - Brickwork Ratings India Pvt. Ltd. (Brickwork) for the purpose of risk weighting their claims for capital adequacy purposes in addition to the existing four domestic credit rating agencies. The rating-risk weight mapping for the long term and short term ratings assigned by Brickwork will be the same as in case of other rating agencies. Yours faithfully, (Deepak Singhal) Chief General Manager-in-Charge
Reproduced for reference with acknowledgment — Source: Reserve Bank of India · RBI/2011-12/499 · issued 13 Apr 2012. The plain-English explanation above is BankPulse’s own independent summary.
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Official RBI source: https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=7128&Mode=0 — Plain-English summary by BankPulse (bankpulse.ai), reviewed by our expert reviewer, CA Amit Jain. Independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India; is our own plain-English paraphrase, not RBI’s original wording.
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