Alpha-Centric ESG Research

Kyle Rudden

I am an ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) analyst with an alpha-centric approach to ESG research. After all, ESG investing is, first and foremost, investing. "Alpha-centric" does not mean apathetic, however. Quite the contrary. I believe global sustainability – i.e., environmental stewardship, social equality, and economic prosperity – is imperative, and private-sector capital is its cornerstone. Private-sector capital still has fiduciary responsibilities. Profitability is necessary for sustained impact. The Triple Bottom Line. People, Planet, AND Profit.

More importantly, you. I value your investment in Smartkarma research, and commit to Insights worthy of your time and money. That means giving ASEAN ESG the attention it deserves, and with Insights that are substantive and differentiated; the intersection of material and under-covered. You can expect investigative research into emergent ESG issues; data-driven analyses of deals (pre-IPO ESG research, ESG-focused M&A consequence analyses, etc.); and trading-oriented ideas like ESG short selling and playing ESG index constituency changes.

I bring both ESG expertise and traditional investing experience, as well as some rather unique perspectives on ESG (a lesson in governance from Enron, anyone?). I spent the last decade exclusively on ESG, researching links to equity returns, credit ratings, cost of capital, and yield spreads. I also contributed to ESG reporting standards (SASB and GRI), and the MBA curriculum (Impact Investing) at the Kellogg School of Management. Previously, I was an Institutional Investor and Wall Street Journal All-Star sell-side analyst at J.P. Morgan.

Please, feel free to contact me about anything.

Life Insurance Corporation of India: The IPO Prospectus Is Weak on ESG Strategy

LIC's Share of a Stagnating Market Declines - Promised Growth of Insurance Penetration a Mirage?

Life Insurance Corporation of India: Time to Think About Scope 3 "Financed Emissions"

Life Insurance Corporation of India IPO - The Positives - Operates on a Grand Scale

Life Insurance Corp of India (LIC) IPO: Offering Details and Index (Fast) Entry

Battle Lines Drawn As BABA Builds Out First/Last-Mile Capacity; But Who Will Fund 75+ Bn CNY CapEx?

<ul>
<li>Life Insurance Corporation of India's (LIC) imminent IPO is momentous in many ways foremost of which is the sheer magnitude... poised to become the largest IPO in India's history.</li>
<li>Momentous from an ESG perspective too. LIC's pursuit of <em>pre</em>-IPO ESG ratings is commendable, precedent-setting, and long-term positive for LIC as a company and India and a country.</li>
<li>Near-Term, pursuing pre-IPO ratings <em>could</em> backfire. Nothing major, but LIC could simply tell its ESG story to investors without (for now) ratings; the desired benefits without the risks.</li>
</ul>


Life Insurance Corporation of India's (LIC) imminent IPO is momentous in many ways foremost of which is the sheer magnitude... poised to become the largest IPO in India's history.
Momentous from an ESG perspective too. LIC's pursuit of pre-IPO ESG ratings is commendable, precedent-setting, and long-term positive for LIC as a company and India and a country.
Near-Term, pursuing pre-IPO ratings could backfire. Nothing major, but LIC could simply tell its ESG story to investors without (for now) ratings; the desired benefits without the risks.


Life Insurance Corporation of India's Pursuit of Pre-IPO ESG Ratings Is Positive, But With Some Risk

Life Insurance of India

Life Insurance Corporation of India's Pursuit of Pre-IPO ESG Ratings Is Positive, But With Some Risk