ESG Finance

This course can be taken as part of a specialization «Contemporary Finance».

About the course

This course provides a general overview of the complex ESG world. Thus, upon completing this course, you will be prepared for subsequent studies to gain a deeper understanding of each of the topics.

The course has several learning outcomes. You will discover the main concepts of ESG and relations with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. In addition, you will have an opportunity to explore the regulatory framework in ESG, reporting standards and framework, the range of ESG products, and ESG ratings. Finally, you will learn to read integrated, non-financial, sustainability or ESG reports and understand the logic and scores of ESG ratings.

This course consists of five modules.

The first module focuses on the basic concepts of ESG. The second module describes the impacts of supranational and national agreements and legislative changes in the EU promoting the ESG agenda. As a case study, we will explore developments in Russia and what steps have been taken about reaching United Nations’ Sustainable Goals. The third module is devoted to ESG Finance products, valuation, portfolio selection strategies, and how the bank and insurance industry responds to ESG challenges. The fourth module will explain the ESG reporting standards and their differences. And finally, the ESG rating methodologies from the significant international raters will be presented. You will learn the commons and differences and the reasons for the divergences in rating for the same companies.