Amid Goldman Fraud Case, Scrutiny of Rating Agencies Increases

The SEC fraud case against Goldman Sachs has put the spotlight on a couple of firms - hedge fund Paulson & Co. and ACA Management LLC - involved in the deal.

But scrutiny is increasing on the credit rating agencies that gave sterling marks for risky securities, both in the Goldman case and in the government's broader probe of the financial crisis.

The mortgage-backed security at the heart of the Goldman case was given a AAA rating by both Moody's Investor Service and Standard & Poor's, prompting Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., to question Moody's role in the case during an interview on CNBC.

"Why is it Moody's isn't just as much in the focus here? How could John Paulson know that these were actually bad mortgages and Moody's couldn't know?"

Also Wednesday, the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission issued subpoenas to Moody's for documents the firm had failed to produce, according to a New York Times report. It was the first subpoena issued by the federal panel, which is investigating the events leading up to the financial crisis of 2008.