Man who downgraded US steps down

Deven Sharma, the man who oversaw the downgrade of the US' credit rating earlier this month, is stepping down as president of Standard & Poor's.

Sharma, whose organisation has come under fierce criticism for taking action to cut the US' AAA-rating, will step down from his position in the next few weeks, having served as boss of the ratings agency since 2007. McGraw-Hill Companies, the parent company of S&P's, announced today Citibank's chief operating officer Douglas Peterson will take on the role from September. Sharma, who leaves the organisation at the end of the year, oversaw the downgrade of the world's largest economy which contributed to the heaviest sell-off in markets since the global financial crisis three years earl...