ICMA Podcast

ICMA’s Mushtaq Kapasi speaks with Suzanne Johnson, Senior Advisor, Sustainable Ocean Business with UN Global Compact about business opportunities in sustainable oceans and the role that capital markets can play in scaling up ocean based solutions to meet the needs of our growing world. Suzanne discusses the concept of  ‘blue bonds’ and how they relate to green and sustainability-linked bonds, the risks and opportunities for commercial investment in sustainable oceans, and how the bond markets can facilitate investment.

ICMA’s Liz Callaghan discusses trends in corporate bond markets in the USA and in Europe with BondCliq CEO Chris White and Gabriele Frediani who heads business development for Bondcliq in Europe,  highlighting similarities and the differences between the two markets. They also reflect on the need for a balanced approach for pre-trade transparency and data ownership and the lessons learned from Covid regarding market mechanics.

In this podcast, Nicholas Pfaff (ICMA’s Head of Sustainable Finance) discusses the main highlights of the ICMA’s recent publication ‘Overview and Recommendations of Sustainable Finance Taxonomies’ with ICMA colleagues Ozgur Altun and Yanqing Jia. They cover what taxonomies mean for sustainable finance, approaches taken by major initiatives such as by the EU and China, the interplay of taxonomies with the Green Bond Principles, existing guidance as well as recommended success criteria for new taxonomy initiatives from other jurisdictions.

Bob Parker, Chair of ICMA’s Asset Management and Investors Council, reviews the market events of the past weeks, including the ongoing rise of inflation, Central Banks monetary policies as well as negative real bond yields.
 

 

Simone Utermarck, Director, Sustainable Finance at ICMA talks to Angel Tejada, Global Head of Green and Sustainable Bonds at BBVA about developments in the sustainable finance market in Latin America, particularly the sustainable bond market, including which countries are issuing, who the issuers are and the popularity of sustainability-linked bond issuance in the region. They also discuss the status of transition finance in LATAM.

Welcome to episode 5 of the Human Side of Finance podcast series, brought to you by ICMA Future Leaders and Humans in Finance. In this podcast we interview Dorrit Lowsen from Change Finance and Oren Shai from Enlivened Leadership Lab to explore the important conversation on Rebalancing Excessive Masculinity in Finance.     

Episode notes:

1. Polarity-related resources: https://oren.is/#dss
2. Polarity Management: Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems by Barry Johnson
3. Shakti Leadership Nilima Bhat and Raj Sisodia

Welcome to episode 4 of the Human Side of Finance podcast series, brought to you by Humans in Finance and ICMA Future Leaders. In this podcast we interview thought leaders on workplace culture and design: Annie Coleman and Kursty Groves. Annie Coleman is Group Head of People & Culture at UniCredit, former Global Head of Culture at UBS Investment Bank, and has also held senior roles at Goldman Sachs, GAM investments and the London Stock Exchange. Kursty Groves is a workplace strategist, author on workplace design, and founder of Shape Work Life, a consulting firm that specialises in co-creating the best places to work.

Episode notes:

1. I Wish I Worked There!, Kursty Groves
2. How Company Culture Shapes Employee Motivation, Harvard Business Review, by Lindsay McGregor and Neel Doshi
3. Rungway: an anonymous workplace advice platform
4. Designing Your Own Workspace Improves Health, Happiness and Productivity, University of Exeter research, by Dr Craig Knight

The Office Chronicles podcast series, Kursty Groves

Welcome to the third episode of the Human Side of Finance podcast series, brought to you by ICMA Future Leaders and Humans in Finance. Often referred to as one of the founding fathers of capital markets, Hans-Joerg Rudloff has been at the forefront of the international capital markets since their inception in the 1970’s. His 50 year career in the finance industry has seen him hold numerous impressive roles at Credit Suisse Peabody and Barclays investment bank to name a few. In this podcast, we talk to Hans-Joerg Rudloff about how the industry has evolved and hear his beliefs about the future of banking. He compares the current generation of bankers to their predecessors and describes in what ways things have evolved or stayed the same. Hans-Joerg Rudloff also shares a few stories of the past on events that caused the international capital markets to grow in leaps and bounds.

Martin Scheck, ICMA Chief Executive talks to Abdulkarim Al-Yaqout,  Head Of Product Development at Kuwait Clearing Company (KCC) about the Kuwaiti debt capital market, its characteristics, main developments as well as its ambitions in ESG and fintech. Abdulkarim also discusses the role of KCC, their medium term strategy and the measures needed to develop further international involvement in the local market.

As we contemplate a return to the office, agile working arrangements are often part of the discussion, but what is agile working and how is it different from hybrid working? How can we structure it so that it brings out the best in people and allows team building and the exchange of ideas? Paul Allsopp, MD of The Agile Organisation has the answers.