Philipp Lotter is the Global Head of Ratings and Research, responsible for teams which assign and monitor ratings for over 33,000 organizations and structured deals. He also oversees issuer relations, research and investor engagement. Under Philipp’s leadership, his analysts monitor debt obligations totaling nearly $76 trillion.

In over two decades with the firm, Philipp has held numerous roles of increasing responsibility across multiple continents. These included Global Head of the Corporate Finance Group (CFG), Co-Head of CFG EMEA, Head of CFG South Asia, Singapore Country Manager and founding member of the Dubai Office where he covered an array of corporates, including Islamic finance. Philipp began his career at Moody’s as an analyst covering utilities, oil and gas in London, where he is based today.

Prior to joining Moody’s, Philipp worked in investment banking at Citigroup and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein. He holds a Diploma from the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management and studied at the European Business School in London and University College Dublin.

Marie Diron is global head of Moody’s Sovereign and Sub-Sovereign Risk Group, with responsibility for credit ratings on countries, regional and local governments, public sector entities and multilateral development banks. Marie is also Moody’s Investors Service lead coordinator on ESG monitoring and integration across asset classes. 

Marie has worked in various functions at Moody’s in the Sovereign Risk Group and (then) Credit Policy. In particular, she was lead sovereign analyst for a number of Asia Pacific credits including Australia, China, India and some frontier market sovereigns. She then managed the Asia Pacific sovereign team, before expanding her responsibilities to today’s global role. Previously, in Credit Policy, Marie co-ordinated Moody’s Global Macro Outlook and other credit research. 

Marie was previously Director at Oxford Economics, leading the company’s forecasting and scenario analysis service to financial sector and corporate clients, after a number of years at the European Central Bank and Brevan Howard LLP. Marie received a MPhil in Economics from the University of Cambridge and graduated from the Ecole Centrale Paris.

Mr. Takehiko Nakao is currently Chairman, Center for International Economy and Strategy.

He is also an executive board member (external) of the Daiichi Life Insurance, Ltd.

Concurrently, he teaches as Visiting Professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) and Graduate School of Public Policy, the University of Tokyo.

He is a member of the Trilateral Commission, Board of Governors of Asian Institute of Management (Manila), the Japan Corporate Governance Network, and several other international and Japanese non-profit organizations.

Before assuming the current job on August 1, 2024, he was Chairman of the Institute at Mizuho Research & Technologies, Ltd.

From April 2013 to January 2020, Mr. Nakao served as President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which is based in Manila with membership of 69 countries including 46 regional developing economies.

Mr. Nakao was the Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs between 2011 and 2013, and in charge of foreign exchange markets, G20 and G7 processes, ASEAN+3 financial cooperation, and bilateral financial relations with the US, Asian, and others.

Mr. Nakao has gained extensive experience in international finance, budget, tax policy, and financial market since he joined the Ministry of Finance in 1978. He was assigned as Minister at the Embassy of Japan in Washington D.C. between 2005 and 2007, and worked as advisor at IMF's Policy Development and Review Department between 1994 and 1997.

He has published books and numerous papers on financial and economic issues both in Japanese and English.

His memoir “The Rise of Asia: Perspectives and Beyond” covering his ADB days as well as those of Vice Minister was published by ADB in July 2022 (available on ADB HP). He also took an initiative and was a lead editor for “Asia’s Journey to Prosperity: Policy, Market, and Technology over 50 Years”, published by ADB in January 2020 (available on ADB HP).

Mr. Nakao holds a BA degree in Economics from the University of Tokyo (1978) and a Master of Business Administration from the University of California-Berkeley (1982).

Tetsuya Yamamoto is a Vice President – Senior Credit Officer with the Financial Institutions Group of Moody’s Japan. He covers ratings across a portfolio of Japanese megabanks, major banks, regional banks, securities firms, government related financial institutions, and finance companies. 

Prior to Moody’s, Tetsuya worked as a senior portfolio manager for Tokyo Star Bank. Prior to Tokyo Star Bank, Tetsuya worked for Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (formerly Sumitomo Bank) as a senior analyst at Corporate Research Department in Tokyo and Hong Kong, covering a wide range of sectors including food & beverage, retail & wholesale, telecommunications, steel, chemical and financial institutions. 

Tetsuya holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Kyoto University.

Tomoya Suzuki is a Vice President and Senior Credit Officer with the Financial Institutions Group.

Based in Tokyo, he covers a portfolio of Japanese issuers comprising megabanks, major banks, securities firms, finance companies, and life insurers. Prior to this, he covered Japanese property and casualty insurers.

Before joining Moody’s Ratings, Tomoya worked in credit risk management at Credit Suisse in Tokyo, and in credit investment at a Japanese bank.

Tomoya holds a Bachelor of Arts in Finance and International Business from the University of South Carolina.

Kensuke Ogawa is an AVP-Analyst with the Financial Institutions Group at Moody’s Ratings. Based in Tokyo, he covers a portfolio of major Japanese banks and insurers.

Kensuke first worked for Moody’s in January 2020 as an Associate Analyst, joining the company after working for a Japanese life insurer in Tokyo and London, and a foreign asset management company as a credit analyst. He left Moody’s for a Japanese asset manager in 2021, and rejoined Moody’s in 2023.

Kensuke holds a Master of Business Administration from Hitotsubashi University and a Bachelor of Engineering from Osaka University. He is a CFA Charterholder.

Sally Yim is a Managing Director in the Financial Institutions Group. Based in Hong Kong SAR, China, Sally is the Head of APAC Financial Institutions, responsible for Moody’s analytical teams covering ratings and research on APAC banks, insurance companies, and non-bank financial institutions such as securities and leasing companies. She is also a co-head of Moody’s Global Banking and Global Insurance & Asset Management rating franchises. In addition, Sally leads the Global Financial Institutions Group’s Environment, Social & Governance (ESG) efforts.

Sally joined Moody’s in February 2005 as an Associate Analyst in New York, covering property & casualty insurers. She transferred to Hong Kong in 2006 and completed a short stint in the Corporate Finance Group, supporting analysts in the
oil & gas, petrochemical and steel sectors. Sally rejoined the Financial Institutions Group as an Analyst in January 2007. Since then, Sally has covered various Asian financial institutions, including insurance companies, banks and securities firms and subsequently, became a manager overseeing various teams covering the ratings and research of Greater China and Korean financial institutions.

Prior to joining Moody’s, Sally worked as a Senior Auditor at Ernst & Young LLP in New York, specializing in private and public insurers. She also worked at Ernst & Young’s National Professional Practice, where she focused on technical accounting research, while assisting in accounting consultations.

Sally holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Accounting from the University of Michigan. She is a CFA charterholder and also a Certified Public Accountant.

Jennifer Wu is the Managing Director for APAC Structured Finance for Moody’s Ratings based in Hong Kong SAR, China. She is responsible for overseeing both primary issuance and surveillance functions for Consumer Assets, Corporate Assets and Covered Bonds, with responsibility for teams based in Sydney, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai.

Prior to rejoining the Structured Finance Group, she had been the Managing Director for APAC Ratings and Research since 2017, where she oversaw the delivery of high-quality analytic support and recruitment, professional development and early career journeys of Moody’s junior analytical talent.

Jennifer first joined Moody’s in 2006 as a lead analyst for Australian RMBS, ABCP and Covered Bond transactions. In 2011, she took on a managerial position for Structured Finance Group in Sydney where she was responsible for managing the Sydney primary rating team. She also coordinated investor outreach for APAC Structured Finance Group.

Jennifer previously worked for a period of seven years in various roles within the securitization industry including Perpetual Limited, Australian Financial Investments Group Ltd and RAMS Home Loans. She also worked as a lawyer at Mallesons Stephen Jaques (now known as King & Wood Mallesons).

Jennifer holds a Bachelor of Laws and Economics from the University of Sydney. She was admitted as a solicitor to the Supreme Court of New South Wales in May 1996.

Laura Acres is Managing Director for the Corporate Finance Group for Asia. Based in Singapore, she has overall responsibility for Moody’s corporate ratings and research for the region, managing teams in Sydney, Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Tokyo. Laura also spearheads our global Emerging Markets initiative, leading many of our aggregated research based publications in this space and helping to coordinate Moody’s approach to this large and growing area of focus. Laura joined the company in 2006 taking a number of Lead Analyst roles for a variety of corporates around the region; she also created Moody’s aggregated high-yield research and outreach initiatives for the Asia Pacific region. She was appointed Managing Director in 2015 and led the Singapore based South & South East Asia corporate rating teams and was then appointed to her current role in 2020. Before joining Moody’s, Laura worked for Schroders PLC in London and Singapore, and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein in Singapore, where she specialized in corporate restructuring and recovery throughout Southeast Asia. Laura holds a BSc (Econ) from the London School of Economics and Political Science. 

Terry has over 25 years of experience in credit ratings and bank credit risk management. As a Managing Director, based in Singapore, he leads Moody’s Public, Project & Infrastructure Finance in Asia Pacific. He assumed his position in February 2015.

In this role, Terry oversees ratings teams in Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Australia, and Japan which are responsible for Moody’s extensive coverage across the public and infrastructure sectors, including transport infrastructure, regulated utilities,power and social infrastructure.

Prior to this role, Terry spent seven years as an Associate Managing Director and head of corporate, project and infrastructure finance ratings for Australasia, based in Sydney. During that period, Moody’s rating coverage for this region grew substantially to more than 100 rated issuers. In the corporate sector, the analytical team monitored ratings in a wide range of non-financial sectors, such as consumer and retail, industrial, mining, oil and gas, and property, while the infrastructure team covered power, transport, utilities and social infrastructure.

Terry was also previously responsible for Moody’s coverage of the oil and gas as well as mining sectors in Asia Pacific.

Before joining Moody’s in 2000, Terry worked for around 12 years in various risk management and credit origination roles at Westpac Institutional Bank in Sydney. His last position at Westpac was Senior Manager, Credit and Divisional Credit Officer, responsible for approving credit exposures to institutional clients.

Alka Anbarasu is an Associate Managing Director in the Financial Institutions Group in Asia. Based in Singapore, Alka is responsible for Moody's analytical teams covering ratings and research on banks, insurance companies, and non-bank financial institutions in Japan, ASEAN and Indian Sub-continent. Alka also coordinates the Global Financial Institution Group's efforts on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) scoring and research. Alka is a regular speaker at Moody's market briefings, external conferences podcasts and broadcast media. She is very active in promoting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) initiatives and is a passionate impact leader for Moody's Community Impact initiatives in Asia.

Alka joined Moody's in 2013 and over the years has led the ratings of several high profile Asian financial institutions. Prior to joining Moody's, she worked in the investment banking division of J.P. Morgan in London and Mumbai and ING Vysya Bank in India. She has close to 20 years of experience in the financial industry. Alka holds an MBA from the Xavier Institute of Management in India.

Brian Cahill is Vice Chairman, Moody’s Ratings Asia Pacific. In this role, he provides strategic and operational support across key business initiatives including Moody’s Ratings domestic credit rating affiliates in India, Vietnam and other locations. He also supports senior level external engagement with market participants including policy makers and regulators in respect of Moody’s Ratings credit rating and sustainable finance activities. He is on the board of Moody’s Foundation supporting its global activities and with a particular focus on its work in Asia Pacific.

Prior to his current role, Brian was Global Head for Sustainable Finance at Moody’s Ratings leading its strategy for incorporating Environmental, Social, and Governance factors - including climate risk - into credit ratings,
analytics, research, and outreach.

In addition, he oversaw the development of Moody’s Ratings sustainable finance solutions such as second party opinions and net zero assessments. These provide analytic insight to market participants wishing to evaluate the sustainability and emission reduction claims of debt issuers, a critical need in the rapidly growing sustainable finance market.

Brian was regional head of Moody’s Ratings corporate finance franchise from 2002 to 2020. He also led the Asia project and infrastructure team from 2009 to 2018 and the Asia Financial institution team from 2009 to 2016.

Prior to joining Moody’s Brian practiced as a lawyer. He received an MA and Master of Law from Cambridge University.

Sally Yim is a Managing Director in the Financial Institutions Group. Based in Hong Kong SAR, China, Sally is the Head of APAC Financial Institutions, responsible for Moody’s analytical teams covering ratings and research on APAC banks, insurance companies, and non-bank financial institutions such as securities and leasing companies. She is also a co-head of Moody’s Global Banking and Global Insurance & Asset Management rating franchises. In addition, Sally leads the Global Financial Institutions Group’s Environment, Social & Governance (ESG) efforts.

Sally joined Moody’s in February 2005 as an Associate Analyst in New York, covering property & casualty insurers. She transferred to Hong Kong in 2006 and completed a short stint in the Corporate Finance Group, supporting analysts in the
oil & gas, petrochemical and steel sectors. Sally rejoined the Financial Institutions Group as an Analyst in January 2007. Since then, Sally has covered various Asian financial institutions, including insurance companies, banks and securities firms and subsequently, became a manager overseeing various teams covering the ratings and research of Greater China and Korean financial institutions.

Prior to joining Moody’s, Sally worked as a Senior Auditor at Ernst & Young LLP in New York, specializing in private and public insurers. She also worked at Ernst & Young’s National Professional Practice, where she focused on technical accounting research, while assisting in accounting consultations.

Sally holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Accounting from the University of Michigan. She is a CFA charterholder and also a Certified Public Accountant.

Stefan Angrick is the Head of Japan and Frontier Market Economics at Moody's in Tokyo. He holds a master's degree from Leipzig University and a PhD from the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo. He has previously held positions with Oxford Economics, the Asian Development Bank Institute, the Bank of Finland, and Keio University.

Taisuke Nishimura began his career at The Dai-ichi Mutual Life Insurance Company in April 1995. He worked in the actuarial department and overseas divisions, including two U.S. assignments. By April 2018, he became Chief of Corporate Planning Unit at Dai-ichi Life Holdings, Inc., and in April 2022, Chief of Financial Planning Unit. In April 2023, he was appointed Group Chief Financial Officer of Dai-ichi Life Group, now responsible for formulating growth and financial strategies.

Soichiro Makimoto is a Vice President and Senior Credit Officer with Moody’s Japan K.K. He covers Japanese banks and insurance companies.

Soichiro has around 20 years of analytical experience and expertise in a variety of areas in the financial services industry.

Before joining Moody’s, he worked as a consultant on the banking and insurance industries for PwC and other firms, providing services related to M&A strategy, regulatory and rating agency advisory, risk/profit management, auditing and assurance and financial product development and sales strategy.

Soichiro holds a Master’s in physics from the University of Tokyo. He is a CFA charterholder and also a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of Japan.

Yoshihiro Uotani is Group CRO, Senior Executive Vice President and Executive Officer of Sompo Holdings, Inc. and leads the global risk team of Sompo Group.

He has over 35 years of experience in the insurance industry at various locations including Germany, UK, US and Japan. Since 2012 he has been engaged in the evolution of Sompo Group's ERM, the ‘ERM Journey.’ He played a critical role, with the local risk teams, in integrating the ERM functions in the overseas insurance business, as it was rapidly expanding through acquisitions, into the Group ERM framework. Prior to his work in risk management, he held various business roles at all the insurance business units in Sompo Group – Domestic P&C Insurance, Domestic Life Insurance, and Overseas P&C Insurance – helping to build up the operational foundations and governance frameworks of the domestic life and overseas P&C businesses when these were in their emerging stages. He assumed the role of Group CRO from 2021 to further enhance the ERM and compliance of the Group.

Mr. Akira Nagase recently joined Aflac as a senior vice president and as a Chief Risk Officer of Aflac Life Insurance Japan Ltd from AIG Japan. He oversees the area of Risk and Information Security in Japan and report to Steven Beaver, EVP.

In AIG, he was a Corporate Officer and Chief Risk Officer of Japan, in charge of Enterprise Risk Management of Japan’s holding and two non-life insurance subsidiaries for more than 9 years.  Prior to AIG, he was with GE Capital for 16.5 years where he obtained extensive experience in risk management as a Chief Risk Officer and Managing Director in change of commercial lending. Mr. Nagase joined Fuji Bank (currently Mizuho Bank, Ltd.) as a new grad hire in 1991.

Akira holds an MBA from Northwestern Kellogg School of Management in 1999, and a B.S from Keio University in 1991.

Tetsuya Yamamoto is a Vice President – Senior Credit Officer with the Financial Institutions Group of Moody’s Japan. He covers ratings across a portfolio of Japanese megabanks, major banks, regional banks, securities firms, government related financial institutions, and finance companies. 

Prior to Moody’s, Tetsuya worked as a senior portfolio manager for Tokyo Star Bank. Prior to Tokyo Star Bank, Tetsuya worked for Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (formerly Sumitomo Bank) as a senior analyst at Corporate Research Department in Tokyo and Hong Kong, covering a wide range of sectors including food & beverage, retail & wholesale, telecommunications, steel, chemical and financial institutions. 

Tetsuya holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Kyoto University.

Soichiro Makimoto is a Vice President and Senior Credit Officer with Moody’s Japan K.K. He covers Japanese banks and insurance companies.

Soichiro has around 20 years of analytical experience and expertise in a variety of areas in the financial services industry.

Before joining Moody’s, he worked as a consultant on the banking and insurance industries for PwC and other firms, providing services related to M&A strategy, regulatory and rating agency advisory, risk/profit management, auditing and assurance and financial product development and sales strategy.

Soichiro holds a Master’s in physics from the University of Tokyo. He is a CFA charterholder and also a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of Japan.

Kensuke Ogawa is an AVP-Analyst with the Financial Institutions Group at Moody’s Ratings. Based in Tokyo, he covers a portfolio of major Japanese banks and insurers.

Kensuke first worked for Moody’s in January 2020 as an Associate Analyst, joining the company after working for a Japanese life insurer in Tokyo and London, and a foreign asset management company as a credit analyst. He left Moody’s for a Japanese asset manager in 2021, and rejoined Moody’s in 2023.

Kensuke holds a Master of Business Administration from Hitotsubashi University and a Bachelor of Engineering from Osaka University. He is a CFA Charterholder.

Naoki Shimizu is an Associate Managing Director – Head of Relationship Management, Commercial Group (Japan). In this role, he leads business development and manages issuer client as well as intermediary relationships in Japan. As Japan Country Manager, he manages the operating environment for the Moody’s Japan business and maintains senior relationships with key internal and external stakeholders.

Naoki joined Moody’s in 2012 initially with the Moody’s Analytics sales team in Tokyo before moving to assume his current position in 2018 at Moody’s Investors Service - Commercial Group. He has been a member of the APAC Diversity Council since 2022 and is passionate about building an inclusive workplace.

Prior to joining Moody’s, Naoki worked at Citi for 12 years, primarily as a structured finance arranger both in New York and Tokyo. He started his career at a Japanese government aid financial institution to support the economic and social development of emerging market countries.

Naoki holds a bachelor’s degree in agricultural engineering from University of Tokyo and a master-of-arts degree in international economics from Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University.