The 5th Annual Conference is currently being planned by the Center for Sustainable Finance and Private Wealth (CSP) and the Center of Competence in Sustainable Finance (CCSF) at the University of Zurich.
Areas covered can be within, or extend beyond, the following:
Data and Reporting
ESG metrics and ratings; Financial disclosure and reporting; Measuring climate-related factors; Spatial finance; AI and Big Data.
Regulators, Regulation and Policy
The role of central banks and regulators; Political economy and sustainable finance; Sustainable finance and law; Effects of sustainable finance regulation.
Stakeholders and Themes
Impact of sustainable investing on the real economy; (Ultra-) High net worth individuals, advisors, intermediaries; Behavioural aspects of sustainable investing; Investor preferences; (Re-)insurance; Banking; Sustainable investments (e.g. Private Equity, Lending, Blended Finance); Managerial responses to sustainable investing; Debt markets (social bonds, social impact bonds, green bonds); Faith-based investors.
Finance, Society and the Natural Environment
Biodiversity and nature; Adaptation and resilience; Sustainable sectors (water, agriculture, healthcare, infrastructure investment, etc.); Social and societal effects.
GRASFI Best Paper Award
(by BNP Paribas)
GRASFI Best Paper Award for Transparency for Stakeholders
(by Swiss Sustainable Finance)
GRASFI Best Paper Award for Climate Finance Research
(by Imperial College)
GRASFI Best Paper Award for Impactful Research
(by Impact Foundation)
Dr Falko Paetzold, EBS University / University of Zurich
Inke Nyborg, University of Zurich
Dr Ben Caldecott, University of Oxford
Professor Rob Bauer, Maastricht University
Professor Ulrich Volz, SOAS, University of London
Dr Falko Paetzold, EBS University / University of Zurich
Professor Rob Bauer, Maastricht University
Professor Timo Busch, University of Hamburg
Professor Steven Ongena, University of Zurich
Professor Caroline Flammer, Columbia University
Dr Julian Kölbel, University of Zurich
GRASFI 2022 has been generously supported by:
Date and Time
Monday, 5 September 2022
14:45 – 16:15 CET
Session
Session Chairs:
Prof. Timo Busch, Hamburg University
Bérénice Lasfargues, BNP Paribas AM
PAPERS
Exploring ITR score: Framing robust company-specific benchmarks and future company-level GHG emissions ranges
Authors: Ruben Haalebos and Felix Fouret
ESG Rating Revisions and Stock Returns
Authors: Rients Galema and Dirk Gerritsen
Divestment, information asymmetries, and inflated ESG ratings
Authors: Bram van der Kroft and Dennis Bams.
Abstracts
Exploring ITR score: Framing robust company-specific benchmarks and future company-level GHG emissions ranges
As Investors are looking to align their portfolios with the goals of the Paris Agreement, portfolio metrics like Implied Temperature Rise (ITR) are becoming increasingly popular. We describe a Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures-aligned ITR methodology and benchmark the results.
ESG Rating Revisions and Stock Returns
We study the six-month impact of ESG rating revisions on U.S. stocks. Decreases are followed by annualized negative returns of 3%, which are not driven by ESG-specific news; partly driven by sustainable index changes; and in line with long-term investors decreasing holdings after a rating decrease.
Divestment, information asymmetries, and inflated ESG ratings
We causally show that ESG ratings are inversely related to sustainable performance because firms face cost of capital incentives to inflate ratings given socially responsible investing under information asymmetries. Consequently, their promises of future sustainable performance do not realize, even up to 15 years in the future.