--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's not a stretch to say the whole…" description: "\"It's not a stretch to say the whole financial industry revolves around the compass point of the absolutely safe AAA rating. But the financial crisis ha..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c0/matt-taibbi-2257_compass_it-s-not-a-stretch-to-say-the-whole-fina_87206.jpg" --- # It's not a stretch to say the whole financial industry… ![“It's not a stretch to say the whole financial industry revolves around the compass point of the absolutely safe AAA rating. But the financial crisis happened because AAA ratings stopped being something that had to be earned and turned into something that could be paid for.” quote by Matt Taibbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c0/matt-taibbi-2257_compass_it-s-not-a-stretch-to-say-the-whole-fina_87206.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c0/matt-taibbi-2257_compass_it-s-not-a-stretch-to-say-the-whole-fina_87206.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c0/matt-taibbi-2257_compass_it-s-not-a-stretch-to-say-the-whole-fina_87206.jpg) > “It's not a stretch to say the whole financial industry revolves around the compass point of the absolutely safe AAA rating. But the financial crisis happened because AAA ratings stopped being something that had to be earned and turned into something that could be paid for.” [Matt Taibbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-taibbi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. AAA ratings became a commodity, eroding their credibility and contributing to the financial crisis when they no longer reflected true risk. **In simple terms:** Ratings lost meaning Key Takeaway Credibility hinges on earned standards Themes financial regulation rating agencies risk assessment market trust crisis causation Mood critical cautious Type analysis warning When to use this quote - investment banking meeting - regulatory hearing - media analysis of the crisis Key Concepts moral hazard systemic risk economic incentives Practical Applications - reforming rating agency governance - enhancing transparency in credit assessments Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards could restore rating reliability? - How do incentives shape rating outcomes? A Different Perspective Proponents argue that AAA ratings still provide a useful shorthand for investors, despite imperfections. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aaa Rating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aaa-rating-1093567/) [Aaa Ratings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aaa-ratings-1093566/) [Compass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compass/) [Crisis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crisis/) [Customer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) [Financial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/financial/) [Financial crisis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/financial-crisis/) [Happened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happened/) [Happened Aaa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happened-aaa-1093569/) [Industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industry/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Paid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paid/) [Rating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rating/) [Rating Financial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rating-financial-1093568/) [Safe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/safe/) [Safe Aaa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/safe-aaa-1093570/) [Something](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/something/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) ## Related quotes > [The once-unthinkable loss of the AAA rating will constitute a further hit to already fragile business and consumer confidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-el-erian/the-once-unthinkable-loss-of-the-aaa-rating-will-constitute-a-further/) [Mohamed El-Erian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-el-erian/) > ['Nobody goes to jail.' 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If we use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-schroeder/there-is-an-ancient-indian-saying-we-do-not-inherit-the-earth-from/) [Patricia Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-schroeder/) > [People who do not know the Bible well have been gulled into thinking it is a good guide to morality. This mistaken view may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/people-who-do-not-know-the-bible-well-have-been-gulled-into-thinking/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [I have told you of the Spaniard who always put on his spectacles when about to eat cherries, that they might look bigger and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/i-have-told-you-of-the-spaniard-who-always-put-on-his-spectacles-when/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [I have an excellent internal compass.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-bonneville/i-have-an-excellent-internal-compass/) [Hugh Bonneville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-bonneville/) > [We must be born with an intuition of mortality. Before we know the word for it. Before we know that there are words. Out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/we-must-be-born-with-an-intuition-of-mortality-before-we-know-the/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [It is cruel for you to leave your daughter, so full of hopeand resolve, to suffer the humiliations of disfranchisement she already feels so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/it-is-cruel-for-you-to-leave-your-daughter-so-full-of-hopeand-resolve/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) [Browse all 569 Compass quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compass/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's not a stretch to say the whole financial industry revolves around the compass point of the absolutely safe AAA rating. 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