ESG Integration in Fixed Income in Practice

Mervyn Tang is a Senior Director and Global Head of ESG Research in Fitch Ratings’ Sustainable Finance division, based in Hong Kong. Mervyn oversees a global research team of 5 which primarily focus on thematic and cross sector ESG research. Mervyn re-joined Fitch Ratings in March 2019 from MSCI Inc., where he was Head of Fixed Income in their ESG Research department, based in Hong Kong. Mervyn has worked with fixed income investors globally supporting them on integrating ESG into their investment process. Prior to joining MSCI in 2017, Mervyn was a Director in Fitch’s Sovereign Group, with the Asia-Pacific team. Mervyn has also worked as an international economist at the Bank of England in London, a diplomat at the British Embassy in Washington DC, and an equities analyst at Citigroup. Mervyn earned an MSc in Economics with distinction from Birkbeck College, University of London, and a BA in Economics and Management from Oxford University. He is a CFA Charterholder.

Mary Leung, CFA, is the head, standards and advocacy, Asia Pacific, at CFA Institute. She is responsible for the development, maintenance, and promotion of capital markets policy perspectives in the APAC region. She also oversees the promotion and development of CFA Institute professional standards in the region. Mary has over 20 years of experience in the global financial industry, having worked in corporate finance, wealth management advisory, and fund management. Previously, she was with Coutts & Co, where she was director of Business Development and Management for North Asia. Prior to that she was executive director at UBS AG, where she led the Corporate Advisory Group in Hong Kong. With experience in both the buy- and sell-sides, Mary has a strong understanding of the drivers and dynamics of different investor groups, including institutional investors, corporates, family offices, asset owners, and high-net-worth individuals. Mary graduated from Peterhouse, Cambridge with a degree in Engineering. She is a CFA charterholder and speaks English, Putonghua, and Cantonese.

Carmen Nuzzo is the Head of Fixed Income at the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). Carmen is responsible for the sovereign, sub-sovereign, securitized and private debt workstreams, as well as for the ESG in Credit Risk and Ratings Initiative. She works with institutional investors, credit rating agencies, issuers, ESG information providers and other stakeholders to develop a better understanding of the ESG factors that can impact credit risk and bond pricing. Prior to joining the PRI in 2017, Carmen was an Executive Director at Morgan Stanley focusing on sustainable economics research. She started her career in 1993 as a macroeconomist at Salomon Brothers, subsequently working for Citigroup.

Venn Saltirov is a portfolio manager in the Asia Fixed Income team at BlackRock Singapore and responsible for ESG integration and dedicated ESG Asia Credit strategies. Prior to joining BlackRock in 2012, he was part of the #1 II-ranked European Industrials Fixed Income Research team at JP Morgan in London. He started his career in the Lehman Brothers Investment Banking and Lehman Brothers Global Trading Strategies divisions. Venn earned a Bachelor's degree in Economics and International Relations from Colgate University and an MBA from INSEAD. He has an EDX certificate in Climate Change: The Science and Global Impact.