Press Release

Morningstar DBRS Confirms Credit Ratings on Two Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority Series

Student Loans
January 28, 2025

DBRS, Inc. (Morningstar DBRS) confirmed its credit ratings on classes of securities included in two Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority Series transactions.

The credit rating confirmations are based on the following analytical considerations:

-- Transaction capital structure, current ratings, and sufficient credit enhancement levels.

-- Credit enhancement is in the form of overcollateralization, reserve accounts, and excess spread with senior notes benefiting from subordination of junior notes.

-- Credit enhancement levels are sufficient to support the Morningstar DBRS-expected default and loss severity assumptions under various stress scenarios.

-- The transaction parties' capabilities with regard to origination, underwriting, and servicing.

-- The transaction assumptions consider Morningstar DBRS' baseline macroeconomic scenarios for rated sovereign economies, available in its commentary Baseline Macroeconomic Scenarios for Rated Sovereigns December 2024 Update, published on December 19, 2024. These baseline macroeconomic scenarios replace Morningstar DBRS' moderate and adverse COVID-19 pandemic scenarios, which were first published in April 2020.

Morningstar DBRS' credit ratings on the applicable classes address the credit risk associated with the identified financial obligations in accordance with the relevant transaction documents. Where applicable, a description of these financial obligations can be found in the transactions' respective press releases at issuance.

ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL, AND GOVERNANCE CONSIDERATIONS

There were no Environmental/Social/Governance factor(s) that had a significant or relevant effect on the credit analysis.

A description of how Morningstar DBRS considers ESG factors within the Morningstar DBRS analytical framework can be found in the Morningstar DBRS Criteria: Approach to Environmental, Social, and Governance Factors in Credit Ratings (August 13, 2024) https://dbrs.morningstar.com/research/437781.

Notes:
The principal methodology applicable to the credit ratings is Morningstar DBRS Master U.S. ABS Surveillance (January 10, 2024) https://dbrs.morningstar.com/research/445740.

Other methodologies referenced in this transaction are listed at the end of this press release.

The credit rating was initiated at the request of the rated entity.

The rated entity or its related entities did participate in the credit rating process for these credit rating actions.

Morningstar DBRS had access to the accounts, management and other relevant internal documents of the rated entity or its related entities in connection with these credit rating actions.

These are solicited credit ratings.

Please see the related appendix for additional information regarding the sensitivity of assumptions used in the credit rating process.

DBRS, Inc.
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New York, NY 10005 USA
Tel. +1 212 806-3277

The credit rating methodologies used in the analysis of this transaction can be found at: https://dbrs.morningstar.com/about/methodologies.

Operational Risk Assessment for U.S. ABS Originators and Servicers (December 5, 2024)
https://dbrs.morningstar.com/research/444162

Legal Criteria for U.S. Structured Finance (December 3, 2024)
https://dbrs.morningstar.com/research/444064

Interest Rate Stresses for U.S. Structured Finance Transactions (February 26, 2024)
https://dbrs.morningstar.com/research/428623

Rating U.S. Structured Finance Transactions (November 18, 2024)
https://dbrs.morningstar.com/research/443136

Rating U.S. Private Student Loan Securitizations (November 11, 2024)
https://dbrs.morningstar.com/research/442835

For more information on this credit or on this industry, visit dbrs.morningstar.com or contact us at info-DBRS@morningstar.com.

Ratings

Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority Series 2018-A
  • Date Issued:Jan 28, 2025
  • Rating Action:Confirmed
  • Ratings:AAA (sf)
  • Trend:--
  • Rating Recovery:
  • Issued:US
  • Date Issued:Jan 28, 2025
  • Rating Action:Confirmed
  • Ratings:AA (sf)
  • Trend:--
  • Rating Recovery:
  • Issued:US
Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority Series 2020-A
  • Date Issued:Jan 28, 2025
  • Rating Action:Confirmed
  • Ratings:AAA (sf)
  • Trend:--
  • Rating Recovery:
  • Issued:US
  • Date Issued:Jan 28, 2025
  • Rating Action:Confirmed
  • Ratings:AA (sf)
  • Trend:--
  • Rating Recovery:
  • Issued:US
  • US = Lead Analyst based in USA
  • CA = Lead Analyst based in Canada
  • EU = Lead Analyst based in EU
  • UK = Lead Analyst based in UK
  • E = EU endorsed
  • U = UK endorsed
  • Unsolicited Participating With Access
  • Unsolicited Participating Without Access
  • Unsolicited Non-participating

ALL MORNINGSTAR DBRS RATINGS ARE SUBJECT TO DISCLAIMERS AND CERTAIN LIMITATIONS. PLEASE READ THESE DISCLAIMERS AND LIMITATIONS AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING MORNINGSTAR DBRS RATINGS, INCLUDING DEFINITIONS, POLICIES, RATING SCALES AND METHODOLOGIES.