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Michael Ridley

Michael Ridley

Executive Director, MSCI Research

Michael Ridley leads MSCI’s ESG and climate content and methodologies across fixed income. Previously Michael was Global Head of ESG Fixed Income Research at HSBC Group from 2015-2020, moving to HSBC Asset Management from 2020, where he covered green bonds, sustainable infrastructure and natural capital. He has also held senior roles in credit analysis covering energy and utilities with Salomon/Citigroup and with Mizuho. Michael holds a PhD in environmental economics from UCL, and master’s degrees from Yale and from the LSE. Michael also holds the CFA IMC.

Research and Insights

Articles by Michael Ridley

    Is Greenium Evaporating in USD Corporate Bonds?

    5 mins read Blog | Feb 9, 2024 | Jakub Malich, Matteo Petrovich, Michael Ridley, Anett Husi

    With the market for sustainable (or labeled) bonds growing rapidly, we assessed their value relative to conventional bonds and found they consistently exhibited a green premium, or “greenium,” though it did diminish over time.

    Green Bonds and Climate — Towards a Quantitative Method

    Research Report | Jan 1, 2024 | Michael Ridley, Jakub Malich, Meghna Mehta

    While examining use of proceeds remains a key element of analyzing green bonds, we highlight four additional metrics to assess these bonds and their issuers in a more quantitative way. They offer a new set of lenses with which to tackle the analysis.

    Sovereign Bonds and Climate

    Research Report | Oct 18, 2023 | Michael Ridley, Alexander Schober, Anett Husi

    Good emissions data is essential for any detailed sovereign-bond climate analysis. In this paper, we address some key questions around how best to quantify sovereign bonds’ financed emissions and climate-transition risk.

    Breaking Down Financed Emissions for Agency RMBS

    5 mins read Blog | Jul 11, 2023 | Joy Zhang, Michael Ridley, Sara Shen

    Agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) finance about 17% of U.S. residential greenhouse-gas emissions annually. We break down that number to help issuers and investors understand emissions sources and drivers behind agency RMBS.  

    Carbon-Emissions Data to Inform the MBS Market

    5 mins read Blog | Mar 8, 2023 | Michael Ridley, Joy Zhang, Cyril Pecoraro

    Our state-level analysis of carbon emissions for U.S. residential properties indicates strong regional differences in emissions and their drivers. Such data could improve understanding of emissions from holdings in mortgage-backed securities and property loans.

    Total Portfolio Footprinting to Transform Green-Bond Emission Accounting

    6 mins read Blog | Nov 23, 2022 | Michael Ridley

    We take a look at how MSCI’s Total Portfolio Footprinting could provide an innovative way for investors to compare the financed-emissions of green and non-green bonds, helping them make better informed investment decisions.