Walter companies paid rating agency $8mn

By the Editorial Team · Monday, August 3, 2026

Two insurance companies majority owned by investor Mark Walter have paid $8 million to credit rating agency Egan-Jones amid ongoing U.S. investigations into their private credit investments. This financial relationship is significant because Egan-Jones provided ratings that coincided with a major portfolio shift toward riskier private credit assets, raising concerns about potential conflicts of interest in risk assessment.

Two insurers majority owned by billionaire investor Mark Walter have paid a total of $8 million to Egan-Jones, a small credit rating agency that has drawn scrutiny amid broader concerns over conflicts of interest in the private credit market. The payments, made since 2024, were revealed in regulatory filings reviewed in London.

Delaware Life and Clear Spring, life insurers under Walter’s control through his investment firm TWG Global, are currently under investigation by U.S. prosecutors for their private credit investments. The insurers reclassified billions of dollars in private credit holdings following inquiries by U.S. authorities, including the Securities and Exchange Commission. This reclassification led Delaware Life’s affiliated assets to increase dramatically from 3 percent to 42 percent of its portfolio.

Egan-Jones has played a notable role in these holdings, with a significant portion of Delaware Life’s affiliated investments receiving ratings from the agency. This is notable given that several other insurers have distanced themselves from Egan-Jones amid questions about the quality and rigor of its ratings.

The agency, staffed by roughly 20 analysts, issues thousands of ratings and has been criticized for potentially facilitating the rapid expansion of private credit. Some regulatory observers have expressed concern that insurers might seek out more favorable ratings to reduce the capital they must hold against riskier assets.

Among U.S. life insurers that disclosed fees paid to Egan-Jones for rating services in 2025, three of the four were linked to Walter: Delaware Life, Clear Spring, and EquiTrust. EquiTrust paid around $1 million to Egan-Jones last year and has a historical connection to Walter, who serves as CEO of Guggenheim Partners, the firm that previously owned EquiTrust. In 2015, Guggenheim sold a majority stake in EquiTrust to former basketball player Earvin “Magic” Johnson, a former Lakers star—a team now owned by Walter. Walter also formerly served on EquiTrust’s board; the insurer is currently owned by Amistad Financial Group.

Egan-Jones defended its role, stating that the payments were made during the ordinary course of business for valid rating services and described such engagements as common practice for investors.

Representatives for Delaware Life, Clear Spring, TWG Global, and Walter declined to comment through spokespeople, while EquiTrust did not respond to requests for comment.

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