The Fixed Income Analysts Society, Inc. (FIASI) is moving the ESG conversation forward by hosting a 2-day event scheduled to coincide with Earth Day 2021: Shining a Light on Transparency; Navigating the Risks and Opportunities of Sustainable Investing. The event will feature four thought provoking and informative panel discussions between Thursday, April 22nd from 2-4:30pm and Friday, April 23rd from 10-1:30pm ET. 

ESG integration in the investment process has been gaining traction over the last decade and has accelerated dramatically in the last two years within the US mutual funds and ETFs community. Accounting for ESG in fundamental analysis has been by far the most popular integration method, though there remain questions around the very definition of ESG and what integration consists of from both a portfolio construction and measurement standpoint. The lack of consensus around ESG has brought to light the risks and implications of greenwashing, and FIASI aims to address this and several related topics in our annual two-day virtual summit.

Topics include ESG risks and opportunities within corporate credit; green, sustainable and social bonds; fixed income ESG indices, ESG applications within CMBS and a workshop featuring forward-looking carbon analytics and climate transition solutions, with speakers from JP Morgan, BNP Paribas, PIMCO, TIAA-CREF, MSCI, Blackrock, Western Asset and more.

Conference Schedule (all times are approximate)

Thursday, April 22nd, 2021 

• 2:00pm - Introduction & Launch:
  • Moderator: Larry White, Managing Director Business Development, DBRS | Morningstar
    • Baer Pettit, President and Chief Operating Officer, MSCI

• 2:30pm - ESG Corporate Bonds Panel:
  • Moderator: Ulf G. Erlandsson, Ph.D., CEO of Anthropocene Fixed Income Institute (AFII)
  • Panelists:
    • Olivia Albrecht, Executive Vice President, PIMCO
    • Andrew Lin, CFA, Managing Director, Infrastructure, Power and Utilities, DBRS Morningstar
    • Joshua Linder, CFA, Senior Credit Analyst, APG-USA
    • Bonnie Wongtrakool, CFA, Global Head of ESG Investment and Portfolio Manager, Western Asset

• 3:30pm - Green Bonds Panel: 
  • Moderator: Caroline Flammer, Associate Professor and Dean’s Research Scholar at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business, Boston University
  • Panelists:
    • Trevor Allen, Head of Sustainable Finance Research Global Markets Research Division, BNP Paribas
    • Stephen Liberatore, CFA, Managing Director Head of ESG/Impact, Nuveen
    • Alastair Sewell, CFA, Senior Director, Fund & Asset Management, Fitch Ratings
    • Ronald van Loon, CFA, Managing Director, BlackRock

• 4:30pm - Conclusion of Day One:
  • Ralph DeCesare, CFA, CAIA, Managing Director & Head of Credit Research, TDAM USA, Inc.

Friday, April 23rd, 2021

• 10:00am - Introduction Day Two and of Student Scholarship Award Winners
  • Mark Howard, CFA, Senior Multi-Asset Specialist, BNP Paribas Securities

• 10:30am - ESG Fixed Income Indices
  • Moderator: Henry Shilling, Director of Research, Sustainable Research and Analysis
  • Panelists:
    • Philip Galdi, Head of Indices, ICE Data Indices, LLC
    • Chris Hackel, Index Product Manager, Bloomberg LP
    • Kumaran Ram, Executive Director, J.P. Morgan Global Index Research
    • Elisabeth Seep, Executive Director, ESG Fixed Income Product Manager, MSCI

•  11:30am - ESG CMBS 
  • Moderator: Keith Kockenmeister, Senior Managing Director, Kroll Bond Rating Agency, Inc.
  • Panelists:
    • Peter Beer, Vice President & Securitized Credit Analyst, Payden & Rygel
    • Leland Bunch, Managing Director, Head of CMBS Capital Markets, Bank of America
    • Thomas A. Fink, CRE, Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Trepp, LLC
    • Edward Reardon, Managing Director, Deutsche Bank

• 12:30pm -  J.P. Morgan ESG Workshop Panel: Investing within planetary boundaries – pursuing Paris-Alignment through Carbon Analytics
  • Moderator: Lydia Harvey, Senior ESG Specialist, J.P. Morgan Global Index Research Group.
  • Panelists:
    • Hasan Cerhozi, Head of Product Development - Methods and Innovation, Vigeo Eiris (V.E.)
    • Francis Condon, Sustainable Investment Team – Fixed Income Specialist, UBS Asset Management Switzerland AG
    • William Perry, Head of Global High Yield/Emerging Markets, Co-Head of ESG Committee, Stone Harbor
    • Rupert Rink, ESG Specialist, J.P. Morgan Global Index Research

• 1:30pm - Conclusion of Day Two:
  • Monica Aggarwal, CFA, Managing Director, Fitch Ratings

Where: Webinar, and recorded!

Price: $80 for the whole event

Register Online

The competition will recognize up to eight research papers in year 2021, with each winning submission receiving an award of up to $5,000 and recognition at the annual FIASI ESG in Fixed Income conference scheduled to be held virtually on April 22 (Earth Day 2021) and April 23, 2021. Payments will be made directly to the recipients. This grant does not in any way preclude subsequent publication of the research in the journals of the recipients' choice. The recipients should agree to acknowledge this grant in all publications and presentations, and to present the research at a mutually convenient date following the FIASI conference.

All students from the institutions of higher education in the New York Metropolitan area are welcome to submit their research for the competition. Examples of student submissions include PhD. dissertations, Masters theses, Honors program theses, or any similar researches. Research papers coauthored between students and faculty are also welcome. Submissions from undergraduate, master, and PhD students will be evaluated in separated pools and awards will be chosen independently from these pools.

All submissions should consist of the following:

• A cover page with title, names of authors, addresses and affiliation;
• An abstract of up to 150 words;
• A research paper;
• A copy of (each) researcher's resume.

A review committee will select the winners from the submitted proposals. In making its selections, the committee will seek input from colleagues at both FIASI and the Gabelli School of Business finance area. The review committee will consist of members drawn from the academic community as well as the fixed income industry.

Research papers will be judged on the basis of the originality and relevance of the research question as well as the qualitative and quantitative aspects of the research methodology.

Applicants should submit their proposals to Ms. Pamela Huang () by March 20, 2021. Decisions will be made before April 15, 2021.

The competition is co-funded by the Fixed Income Analysts Society and Fordham University's Gabelli School of Business.

The Fixed Income Analysts Society (FIASI) was founded in 1975. It is a not-for-profit professional society dedicated to the education of its membership and the fixed income community at large. FIASI, serves its 350 or so members by sponsoring programs and workshops covering topics of current interest and presented by distinguished industry leaders. FIASI also sponsors an annual Hall of Fame ceremony to recognize the lifetime achievements of outstanding practitioners in the advancement of fixed income security and portfolio analysis. 

Fordham University's Gabelli School of Business is the only Jesuit business school in New York City. The Mission of the School is to inspire and empower positive global change; developing students into compassionate business leaders and supporting faculty and students in the ongoing generation of new knowledge. Its vision is to become a world leader in social innovation by inspiring and equipping its graduates to be business leaders who understand the challenges in sustainability facing businesses and the potential of harnessing the power of social responsibility for both financial success and societal impact.

SOURCE The Fixed Income Analysts Society (FIASI)

Authors of the upcoming book:

pdf Undiversified: The Big Gender Short in Investment Management (360 KB)

• Ellen Carr, Fixed Income Portfolio Manager, Weaver Barksdale
• Katrina Dudley, Senior Vice President, Investment Strategist and Portfolio Manager, Franklin Templeton Investments.

The Q&A will be conducted by Bob Kricheff, Senior VP and Global Strategist, Shenkman Capital Management.

The authors will cover the psycho-cultural barriers leading to a dearth of female investors across all asset classes. By analyzing the Investment Managers flywheel and understanding the barriers to recruitment, retention and promotion of women, the authors issue a challenge to IM firms, their employees, allocators and influencers with tangible and actionable steps they can take to achieve gender parity in the industry.

Event details: Wednesday, May 19, 2021 from 5PM to 6PM
Location: Virtual and Recorded
Cost: Non-Members $30, Members Free (login to receive the discount)

Register Online