Rahul Ghosh Managing Director – Global Head of Sustainable Finance Moody’s Ratings

Rahul Ghosh is Managing Director – Global Head of Sustainable Finance for Moody's Ratings.

Rahul leads global oversight for the credit rating agency’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) research and outreach strategy. In this capacity, he is responsible for co-ordinating high quality and impactful research exploring the credit implications of ESG, as well as digital and in-person outreach to meet the growing market needs of investors, issuers and other important stakeholders.

Rahul is a regular participant at high-profile industry working groups, market briefings, external conferences and media engagements. He is a member of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures, a market-led initiative to develop a risk management and disclosure framework for nature-related risks. He has also represented Moody’s on the UN Principles for Responsible Investment's advisory committee on credit ratings and the Green and Social Bond Principles working groups. He has presented on the impact of climate change on emerging market sovereigns at the G20 Green Finance Study Group and on sustainable finance trends at the International Finance Corporation’s Global Debt Mobilization Conference.

Before his current role, Rahul oversaw Moody’s ESG Solutions Group outreach and engagement activities globally with the sustainability stakeholder community. He also previously worked in Moody’s Credit Strategy & Research team where he was responsible for thematic research and outreach on global emerging market (EM) credit trends. Prior to joining Moody’s in 2013, Rahul was the Head of Asia at BMI Research (Fitch Solutions) in Singapore, leading a team of macroeconomists and industry specialists in analysing sovereign risk, sector performance and the capital markets.

Rahul is a passionate impact leader for Moody’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives in London, chairing the pillar on “activating an environmentally sustainable future”. He holds a Masters degree in Economics from the University of Edinburgh and a Certificate in ESG Investing from the CFA Society of the UK.

Matt Kuchtyak Vice President – Sustainable Finance Moody's Ratings

Matt Kuchtyak is Vice President – Sustainable Finance for Moody’s Ratings. In this capacity, Matt is responsible for the origination and publication of thematic research related to the global sustainable finance markets. He has authored Moody’s market-leading quarterly sustainable finance market update since its inception in 2015 and has developed into a leading market voice on sustainable finance developments.

Matt leads outreach and engagement on sustainable finance issues, cultivating relationships with asset managers, asset owners, financial institutions, corporations, standard setters and other market participants. He frequently participates in high-profile outreach including investor briefings, webinars, third-party conferences and media engagements. Matt also represents MESG on a variety of industry initiatives, such as the International Capital Market Association’s Green Bond Principles (GBP) working groups.

Before his current role, Matt was an analyst on the ESG team at Moody’s Investors Service (MIS), where he advanced the rating agency’s efforts to systematically and transparently incorporate ESG considerations into its credit ratings. He was a key contributor to the development of MIS’s cross-sector ESG methodology, launch of ESG Issuer Profile Scores and Credit Impact Scores and the development of Carbon Transition Assessments. He was also the lead analyst for the MIS Green Bond Assessments. Previously, Matt was an analyst in the MIS US Public Finance Group, where he served as a lead analyst for a diverse portfolio of hospitals, public and private universities and other not-for-profits.

Matt is a corporate social responsibility (CSR) impact leader, working directly with Moody’s CSR team to shape, communicate and implement the firm's global CSR strategy and initiatives. He holds a B.A. in Economics and Political Science summa cum laude from Rutgers University-New Brunswick, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Isabelle Laurent Deputy Treasurer & Head of Funding European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)

Isabelle Laurent is the Deputy Treasurer and Head of Funding at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

Isabelle spent 13 years in London and Hong Kong in treasury, fixed income origination, and swaps trading and marketing with Swiss Bank Corporation International, Nomura International and latterly at NatWest Markets where she was Director of Debt and Derivatives Marketing.

She joined EBRD in 1997 as Deputy Head of the Treasury Funding team, and was promoted to Deputy Treasurer and Head of Funding in 2003. In addition to overseeing EBRD’s issuance in the capital markets and investor relations, Isabelle also focuses on capital markets’ development in EBRD’s countries of operations and sustainable finance.

Following Isabelle’s instigation of EBRD’s issuance of Green Bonds and Social Bonds in 2010, EBRD has continued to be active in the sustainable bond market both as an issuer and investor. For several years, Isabelle has been fully engaged in the work of the Green Bond Principles (“GBP”), as a member of its Executive Committee, and as co-chair of the GBP’s Impact Reporting Working Group.

Nicholas Pfaff Deputy CEO, Head of Sustainable Finance International Capital Market Association (ICMA)

Nicholas Pfaff is the Deputy Chief Executive and Head of Sustainable Finance at the International Capital Market Association (ICMA). He is the Secretary of the Green, Social, Sustainability and Sustainability-linked Bond Principles. He is a former member of the European Commission’s Technical Expert Group (TEG) on Sustainable Finance and Platform on Sustainable Finance (PSF), and is a contributor to the G20 and G7 working groups and dialogues on sustainable finance. He also oversees ICMA’s Paris office. Nicholas is a senior banker with extensive international experience in investment banking and capital markets, as well as in development banking. He has worked previously at Goldman Sachs, BNP Paribas and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).