ICMA Podcast

COVID-19 ICMA Asset Management & Investors Council market update (22 July 2020)

Robert Parker, Chair of ICMA's Asset Management and Investors Council, reviews the market events of the last two weeks and investor positioning, in light of the adoption of the EU recovery fund, increasing COVID-19 daily cases in the US and its effect on the economic recovery. 

COVID-19 an update on financial markets

Three months after his initial podcast on the impact of COVID-19 on financial markets, David Oakes, the Course Director on ICMA’s Introduction to Bond Markets Qualification (IBMQ) and the Fixed Income Certificate (FIC), reviews the recovery in financial markets since the turmoil of March in the light of economic reality and looks at what we can expect in the future.

China’s new Green Bond Catalogue

ICMA speaks to Prof. Yao Wang, Deputy Secretary General of China’s Green Finance Committee  and Director General of the International Institute of Green Finance. Prof. Wang shares her insights into the consultation draft of the Green Bond Endorsed Project Catalogue (2020 version) released in early July, the major revisions proposed and its potential impacts. She also talks about her views on climate finance standards.

COVID-19 and future trends in the repo market

James Upton, Commercial Services Director, LCH and co-Chair of the ERCC Operations Group and ICMA’s Alexander Westphal talk about how the repo market performed under pressure earlier this year, the regulatory agenda for the rest of 2020 and the main trends in the market, including the expansion of repo clearing, electronification of securities finance and standardisation of the securities post trade process.

Transition to risk free rates: an official sector panel discussion

On this ICMA podcast, recorded on June 25, representatives from the European Central Bank, the European Investment Bank, the Financial Conduct Authority, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the Swiss National Bank discuss the transition away from LIBOR and other IBORs and towards risk-free reference rates, with a focus on the international bond market. They address the progress of the transition to risk-free rates so far, despite the market impact of the coronavirus pandemic; the remaining challenges to complete implementation of the transition in time, including legacy issues; and the importance of international coordination, how this works and what it involves.

COVID-19 ICMA Asset Management & Investors Council weekly market update (8 July 2020)

Robert Parker, Chair of ICMA's Asset Management and Investors Council, reviews the market events of the last two weeks including the worsening coronavirus statistics in the US and their effect on economic recovery, low bond market volatility and the current credit rally along with this month’s strong performance of Chinese equity indices.

Establishing a gender diversity equity fund

Julie Bech and Audhild Asheim Aabø, portfolio managers at Nordea Investment Management, talk to Rebecca Bray, a steering committee member of ICMA Future Leaders, about the proven social and business benefits of increased diversity in the workplace and the challenges of setting up an actively managed equity fund focused on the fundamentals, such as growth and future outlook, combined with a number of measures of how a company is succeeding in implementing gender diversity.

Japan’s first COVID-19 bond

Ryosuke Kobayashi, Vice President, Financial Planning Division, Office of the CFO, Capital Management Department at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group in Tokyo and Geraint Thomas, Head of Sustainable Finance, Capital Markets Group, MUFG Securities EMEA talk to ICMA’s Simone Utermarck about MUFG’s commitment to ESG Finance and the strategy behind their COVID-19 sustainability bond issue, Japan’s first COVID-19 bond.

Evolution of the repo post trade landscape

Scott Brown of Pirum and ICMA’s Andy Hill discuss the automation of post trade repo, looking at why it has lagged behind the securities lending market, the factors driving automation in repo now, including the SFTR and CSDR regulation, and the overall benefits of an efficient post trade process.

COVID-19: Impact and Outlook for Covered Bonds

Sabrina Miehs, Covered Bond Analyst at Helaba, Thomas Cohrs, Head of FIG and SSA Origination, Syndicate & Sales at Helaba, and Daniel Rauch, Portfolio Manager & Head of Covered Bonds Research at Union Investment, review the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on covered bonds, take stock of central bank related measures and explore the potential role of covered bonds in (re)funding local economies after the pandemic.