Moody's Talks - Focus on Finance

We talk with Sabih Behzad of Deutsche Bank about how the bank is using blockchain technology and what's ahead for digital transformation of the broader banking industry. Speakers: Sabih Behzad, Head of Digital Assets and Currencies Transformation, Deutsche Bank; Cristiano Ventricelli, VP - Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings Host: Danielle Reed, VP - Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings  Related Research:Digital Economy – Cross Region: Tokenization could boost liquidity for alternative assetsDigital Economy – Cross Region: Digital custodians gain traction, despite risks 

Credit conditions are holding steady across most banking systems globally despite the potential for trade disputes to weaken GDP and business investment, hurting borrower health and profitability.  Host: Danielle Reed, VP - Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings  Guests: Effie Tsotsani, VP - Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; David Tao, AVP - Analyst, Moody's Ratings; C.J. Wong, AVP - Analyst, Moody's Ratings 

We talk to Animoca Brands about digital innovation, stablecoins, and how collaborations among institutions, companies and regulators are pushing Web3 -- the decentralized internet -- into the mainstream. Speakers: Evan Auyang, Group President - Animoca Brands; Cristiano Ventricelli - VP - Senior Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP - Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings 

We talk to Sandip Wadje of BNP Paribas about the risks of digital technology, and how banks are balancing innovation and digital transformation against their security and compliance needs.Speakers: Sandip Wadje, Managing Director – Global Head of Emerging Technology Risks, BNP Paribas; Lucas Viegas, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings

We discuss the outlooks for digital finance and cybersecurity. Tokenization and digital assets will gain traction. Meanwhile, cyberattacks will likely be more frequent and more personalized.Speakers: Cristiano Ventricelli, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Leroy Terrelonge, VP-Analyst, Moody's RatingsHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings; Carolyn Henson, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated research:Digital Economy – Global: 2025 Outlook – Institutions to edge further into digital finance, focus on risk mitigationCybersecurity – Global: 2025 Outlook - Credit risk set to rise as cyber attackers target larger companies

Solid GDP growth in most markets and low unemployment will support finance companies' profitability and ease asset risks. Moderating inflation will improve most companies' ability to issue debt.Speaker: Bruno Baretta, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Michael Porta, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated research:Finance Companies — Global: 2025 Outlook – Stable with solid economic activity and easing inflation in most markets

Higher interest rates and a favorable macroeconomic environment are among the factors supporting credit strength for insurers worldwide.Speakers: Vincent Del Gatto, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Will Keen-Tomlinson, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's RatingsHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings; Myles Neligan, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated research:Life Insurance – Global: 2025 Outlook – Stable on largely favorable macroeconomic conditions, strong capitalProperty & Casualty Insurance – Global: 2025 Outlook - changed to stable as price increases offset rising claims costs

Analysts from Moody's Ratings discuss key outlook drivers including slower economic growth, low interest rates, weak credit demand and ongoing effects of distress in the property sector.  Speakers: Kelly Chen, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Frank Yuen, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's RatingsHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings; Simin Ngai, AVP-Research Writer, Moody's Ratings Related content: Financial Institutions – China: 2025 Outlook - Negative on profitability pressures and elevated asset risks

We discuss what's behind our shift to a stable outlook for banking globally in 2025 from our negative outlook in 2024, and unpack some regional differences.Speakers: David Yin, VP-Sr Credit Officer at Moody's Ratings; Maria Cabanyes, Senior Vice President at Moody's Ratings; David Tao, AVP-Analyst at Moody's RatingsHost: Jun Yang, AVP-Research Writer at Moody's RatingsRelated research:Banks – Global: 2025 Outlook - Improves to stable, underpinned by stabilizing economic growth

Malik Faizullah of Moody's Ratings talks to Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov about technology that makes blockchains more connected and compatible, paving the way for new digital finance use cases.Speakers: Malik Faizullah, VP Mgr-Software Engineering at Moody's Ratings; Sergey Nazarov, Chainlink co-founderHost: Danielle Reed, VP-Senior Research Writer

Moody's Ratings Banking team AMD Fadi Massih discusses key highlights from our survey of banks actively engaged with private credit.Speaker: Fadi Massih, Associate Managing Director-Banking at Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP-Senior Research Writer; Michael Porta, VP-Senior Research WriterRelated research: Private Credit – Global: Bank funding of private credit grows rapidly, in step with sector's capital-raising 

Stellar Development Foundation Executive Director and CEO Denelle Dixon explains what the open source blockchain network is doing to make financial services more accessible globally.Speakers: Denelle Dixon, Executive Director and CEO of the Stellar Development Foundation; Farooq Khan, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Decentralized Finance and Digital Assets – Global - 2024 Outlook: Digital finance slowly, steadily moves toward interoperability, standardization

We discuss European banks' ability to withstand a severe commercial real estate downturn, and how current property market weakness in APAC and China affects banks and insurers.Speakers: Kathleen Gamper, AVP-Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Joseph Lin, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Qian Zhu, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's RatingsHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings; Jun Yang, AVP- Research Writer, Moody's Ratings

We talk to QuantCube Technology co-founder and CEO Thanh-Long Huynh about how machine learning and alternative data combined can identify financial trends far ahead of official data.Speakers: Thanh-Long Huynh, co-founder and CEO of QuantCube Technology; Vincent Gusdorf, AMD, Digital Finance and AI Analytics, Moody's RatingsHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated research:Digital Transformation – Global: Alternative data's timely insights can enhance conventional data, not replace itDigital Transformation – Global: 2024 AI Outlook - Swift progress likely but rapid roll-out will bring risks

Strong prices, tight policy terms and higher investment yields drive a positive outlook for the global reinsurance sector.Speaker: Brandan Holmes, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's RatingsHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Reinsurance – Global: Outlook shifts to positive as improvement in risk/return dynamics gathers momentum

We talk to Alphaledger co-founder and CEO Manish Dutta about his firm's quest to rebuild the fixed income market's financial infrastructure, using blockchain.Speakers: Manish Dutta, co-founder and CEO, Alphaledger; Gregory Sobel, AVP-Analyst, Moody's RatingsHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Local Government – US: Blockchain offers prospects for efficiencies, financial benefits in public finance

Cyber and climate risk are also high on the agenda at Moody's summer 2024 insurance conferences in New York and London.Speakers: Audio excerpts from Sarah Williams, Chief Risk Officer, Guardian Life; Brandan Holmes, VP  Senior Credit Officer FIG, Moody's Ratings; Heather Lavallee, CEO, Voya; Joe Brandon, CEO, Allegheny; Sarah Hibler, Associate Managing Director FIG, Moody's Ratings; Ari Moskowitz, Chief Risk Officer, Everest Group; James Eck, VP Senior Credit Officer FIG, Moody's Ratings.Hosts: Marc Pinto, MD Financial Institutions FIG, Moody's Ratings, Myles Neligan – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Property & Casualty Personal Insurance – US: 2024 outlook changed to stable on rate increases, improved profitabilityProperty & Casualty Insurance – US: Homeowners insurers aim to boost profits as weather-related losses, inflation take tollInsurers' growing private credit investment brings more benefits than risksCommercial real estate risks still abound for US life insurersLife Insurance – Global: 2024 Outlook - Stable as higher rates offset weaker revenue, rising asset risk 

Matthew White, CEO of Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), explains how the regulator is trying to make it safer for financial institutions to expand into digital finance in the region.Speakers: Matthew White, CEO of VARA; Rajeev Barma, SVP and Head of Strategy, Digital Economy, Moody's Ratings Host: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Decentralized Finance and Digital Assets – Global: 2024 Outlook: Digital finance slowly, steadily moves toward interoperability, standardizationDigital Economy – Global: Islamic finance's adoption of blockchain could be beneficial, but faces crucial barriers

Our analysts discuss which segments and loan types pose the largest risks to US banks and life insurers, and zero in on concentration risks in asset portfolios.Speakers: Evelyn Ocas Salazar, AVP-Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Darrell Wheeler, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Ratings; Stephen Lynch, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Ratings, Hosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings; Michael Porta, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Banks – US: CRE survey loan-level analysis shows solid underwriting, high concentration riskBanks – US: Retained capital, strong liquidity are key credit buffers for CRE-concentrated banksLife Insurance — US: Commercial real estate risks still abound, especially in the office sector

Yuval Rooz, CEO of Digital Asset, shares his thoughts on the present and future use cases of blockchain technology at global financial institutions.Speakers: Cristiano Ventricelli, VP – Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Yuval Rooz, CEO, Digital AssetHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings

We discuss how differences in regional regulatory regimes and market structures affect life insurers' allocations to private credit investments, and lay out those investments' benefits and risks.Speakers: Benjamin Serra, Senior Vice President, Moody's Ratings; Will Keen-Tomlinson, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated research:Life Insurance – Cross Region: Regulation contributes to material differences in private credit allocationInsurance-Global: Insurers' growing private credit investment brings more benefits than risks

Moody's Ratings analysts explain why Japan's regional banks are vulnerable to yield-curve steepening and predict strong loan growth, and higher funding costs, for India's non-bank finance companies.Speakers: Kensuke Ogawa, Analyst, Moody's Ratings;  C.J. Wong, AVP- Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Regional banks – Japan: Strong liquidity will mitigate increasing risks from rising ratesNon-bank finance companies – India: Credit fundamentals improving backed by strong economy amid rising funding costs

As the regulatory environment continues to evolve, US and European banks have sought regulatory capital relief by offloading the credit risk of loans they make via special types of transactions.Guests: Warren Kornfeld, Senior Vice President at Moody's Ratings; Nick Monzillo, VP-Senior Analyst at Moody's Ratings; Frank Cerveny, VP-Senior Research Analyst at Moody's RatingsHost: Aaron Johnson, VP-Senior Research Writer at Moody's RatingsRelated reports:Auto ABS - US: Credit-linked notes include risks not seen in typical auto ABS; issuance is risingBanks and Structured Finance – US: Risk transfer gives banks protection, but more capital is better; ABS implications varyBanks and Structured Finance – Europe: Output floor proposal could erode benefits of SRT for regulatory capital and risk management purposes

We talk to Joe Lyons of Bitsight about the growing risk from deepfakes in the age of GenAI. Speakers: Joe Lyons, VP, Cyber Risk & Ratings Research, Bitsight;  Abhi Srivastava, AVP-Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research: Digital Economy – Cross Region: GenAI-powered deepfakes introduce new and transformed credit risks

Shortening the settlement cycle is a complex undertaking for a clearing house and its members, but once the transition is complete, it will reduce counterparty risk.Speakers: Peter Nerby, Senior Vice President, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Exchanges & Clearing Houses – North America: Shift to T+1 settlement has near-term risks for securities firms but will benefit financial markets

Alternative asset managers seek removal of barriers to private markets for individual investors. Regulators are supportive but also wary of potential dangers.Speakers: Alexandra Aspioti, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:As individual investors drive growth in private markets, risks also rise

Companies have responded to weather-related losses and higher reconstruction costs with sharp increases in premiums and tighter policy terms, and some have exited high-risk regions.Speakers: Evelyn Ocas Salazar, AVP Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Property & Casualty Insurance – US: Homeowners insurers aim to boost profits as weather-related losses, inflation take toll

Anthony Moro, CEO of Provenance Blockchain Foundation, joins us to talk about the technology and infrastructure developments shaping the future of financial asset tokenization.Speakers: Rajeev Bamra, SVP and Head of Strategy, Moody's Ratings; Anthony Moro, CEO, Provenance Blockchain FoundationHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:As popularity of tokenization platforms grows, so do risks to investors​​MAS initiatives will advance asset tokenization, digital money transactions​​​

Moody's analysts explore green finance, discussing greenwashing risk, the EU green loan market, and how clear standards and rules – and blockchain technology – could play a positive role.Speakers: Michael Dion, VP – Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Alberto Postigo, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Ratings; Abhi Srivastava, AVP Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research:Asset Managers – Global: Despite growing regulation, greenwashing is a persistent riskBanking – Europe: Proposed green loan definition to support banks' alignment with climate targetsDigital Finance – Cross Region: Blockchain can bring rigor and efficiency to ESG management, data and reporting

Basel 3.1 reforms will lead banks to apply high haircuts to unsustainably high property values and adjust mortgage risk weights to better differentiate between low-risk and high-risk loans.Speakers: Alexander Zeidler, VP-Sr Credit Officer at Moody's Ratings; Guillaume Lucien-Baugas, VP-Senior Analyst at Moody's RatingsHosts: Aaron Johnson, VP-Senior Research Writer at Moody's Ratings; Danielle Reed, VP-Senior Research Writer at Moody's Ratings

As cyberattacks rise and AI poses new dangers, Moody's analysts discuss banks' own views of their cybersecurity defenses and explain the EU's plan to rein in risks from third-party tech providers. Speakers: Lucas Viegas, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Brandon O'Halloran, AVP-Analyst, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's RatingsRelated Research: Financial Institutions – Europe: Stringent new tech rules for banks and their IT providers will improve cybersecurityFinancial Institutions – Global: 2023 Cyber Survey - Escalating cyberthreats drive up budgets as banks fortify defensesCybersecurity – Cross Region: Generative AI may increase cyber risk rather than lessen itFinancial Institutions – Global: Ransomware attack on ICBC FS highlights cyber risks to the financial system

Our 2024 Banking System Outlooks show more European systems joining the US on negative as economies slow and loan performance weakens. China stays negative, while India is positive.Speakers: Warren Kornfeld, Senior Vice President, Moody's Ratings; Effie Tsotsani, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Juwon Lee, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's RatingsHosts: Carolyn Henson, VP – Senior Research Writer, Myles Neligan, VP- Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings

Swedish lender Klarna's AI assistant is driving material credit improvement this year. In the US, disclosures from Wells Fargo point to what's ahead for banks' commercial real estate loan performance.Speakers: Stephen Tu, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Ratings; Allen Tischler, Senior Vice President, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Ratings

Over the next several years private credit in Europe will grow, largely because of companies' substantial refinancing needs. But banks are already fighting to gain back market share.Speakers: Guillaume Lucien-Baugas, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Ratings; Jeanine Arnold, Senior Vice President, Moody's RatingsHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Private Credit – Europe: Europe's private credit market will accelerate, along with competition and risk

We discuss the severe thunderstorms' rising insured costs. Plus: Earnings weakness in the Medicare Advantage business and US commercial real estate exposure of German banks.Speakers:  Bernhard Held, VP-Sr Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Dean Ungar, VP-Sr Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Evelyn Ocas Salazar, AVP-Analyst, Moody's Investors Service; Juergen Grieser, Sr Dir Mgr-Analytics & Modeling, Moody's RMSHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Myles Neligan, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Property & Casualty Insurance – US: Battered by convective storms, carriers seek higher prices, advanced modelsHealth Insurance – US: Medicare Advantage continues to grow, but its profitability is weakeningBanks – Europe: Most EU banks have limited direct exposure to US CRE, German banks are more exposed

Steve Tu, Farooq Khan and Petr Paklin of Moody's, with Joe Lyons of Bitsight, on how AI will change banks; On Fast Finance, we discuss Evergrande's liquidation and upcoming FHLBank reforms.Speakers:  David Yin, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Allen Tischler, Senior Vice President, Moody's Investors Service; Stephen Tu, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Farooq Khan, VP – Senior Analyst, Moody's Investors Service; Petr Paklin, AVP – Analyst, Moody's Investors Service; Joe Lyons, Senior Director Cyber Risk Quantification & Ratings Research, Bitsight Hosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Carolyn Henson, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Property – China: Court order to liquidate China Evergrande will weaken fragile market sentimentBanks – US: FAQ: Initial impact of FHFA reforms of FHLBanks will be less emergency liquidity for troubled banksBanks – Global: Banks are well-placed for substantial efficiency gains with deep AI adoption

Cristiano Ventricelli explains how recent improvements to digital finance systems could help them gain scale. Plus, we discuss BlackRock's recent acquisition and the SEC's approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs.Speakers:  Abhi Srivastava, AVP – Analyst, Moody's Investors Service; Neal Epstein, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Cristiano Ventricelli, VP-Senior AnalystHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Myles Neligan, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Decentralized Finance and Digital Assets – Cross Region: SEC approves spot Bitcoin ETFs, advancing cryptocurrency institutionalizationBlackRock, Inc.: Acquisition of Global Infrastructure Partners is credit positiveDecentralized Finance and Digital Assets – Global - 2024 Outlook: Digital finance slowly, steadily moves toward interoperability, standardization

Our global outlook for the sector remains negative for 2024, but the picture for non-bank finance companies is more varied than a year ago, with easing conditions in some markets and businesses.Speakers: Bruno Baretta, AVP – Analyst, Moody's Investors ServiceHost: Michael Porta, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service

Weak results in personal lines drive the negative outlook for property and casualty insurance, while life insurance benefits from higher interest rates.Speakers: Bruce Ballentine, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Christian Badorff, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Myles Neligan, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service

James Eck and Brandan Holmes explain how rising physical climate-related claims complicate insurers' risk management; Olivier Panis discusses benefits for banks of enhanced climate change reporting.Speakers: Olivier Panis, Senior Vice President, Moody's Investors Service; James Eck, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Brandan Holmes, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Myles Neligan, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Insurance – Global: Rising physical climate risk generates uncertainty, complicates risk managementP&C Insurance and State Government — US: Sharp pricing hikes draw reinsurers to Florida; insurance market strains continueEnhanced climate change reporting will help banks manage risks

The boost banks have enjoyed for the last two years will start to fade as high rates translate into higher funding costs and lower growth. But the outlook for banks is not so gloomy everywhere.Speaker: Felipe Carvallo, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors ServiceHost: Erin McDermott, AVP – Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service

Reduced economic growth could lower financial institutions' profitability, but there are also opportunities to sell retirement products and new forms of insurance.Speakers: Qian Zhu, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Kelvin Kwok, AVP-Analyst, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Demographics – China: Aging population, smaller workforce will have broad implications across sectorsLife Insurance – China: Aging population offers growth opportunities, with risks and competitionInsurance – China: Latest policies for health insurance improve diversification but raise underwriting risks

Moody's analysts discuss how lenders are managing the risks created by the end of the low-interest-rate era, and explore the favorable funding and liquidity characteristics of universal banks.Speakers: Yasuko Nakamura, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Edoardo Calandro, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Carolyn Henson, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Myles Neligan, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Banking – Global: Interest rates and the banking book: risks and regulationBanks – Cross Region: Universal banks' superior funding and reserves offset liquid asset encumbrance

Private credit lenders built stores of capital that we expect will be put to work competing with banks to fund a new wave of leveraged buyouts. In the first segment of this episode, we discuss LBO competition and the risks it poses. Later, our guest lays out the concentration of private credit among a handful of giant asset managers building their own, largely self-contained lending ecosystems.Guests: Christina Padgett, Associate Managing Director and Sandra Veseli, Managing Director, both from Moody's Investors Service's Corporate Finance Group; and Rory Callagy, Associate Managing Director, with Moody's Financial Institutions Group.Host: Jeff Pruzan, Vice President – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service.To read more on this topic, visit Moodys.com. (Some content available only to registered users or subscribers.)Links:Private Credit – Global: Syndicated and private lenders will spar as LBOs revive, upping systemic risk

Moody's analysts C.J. Wong and Yulia Wan discuss ongoing real estate market weakness in China and Vietnam, and explain how the credit effects will differ in each country.Speakers: C.J. Wong, Analyst, Moody's Investors Service; Yulia Wan, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceAdditional Research:Banks – Asia-Pacific: Ongoing real estate sector stress raises credit risks for banks in China and Vietnam

Moody's analysts Marat Faritov and Cristiano Ventricelli discuss how digital bonds could reshape debt markets, and the hurdles to be overcome before the technology can be more widely adopted.Speakers: Marat Faritov, AVP – Analyst, Moody's Investors Service; Cristiano Ventricelli, AVP – Analyst, Moody's Investors ServiceHost: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Digital bonds' features could transform debt markets over timeUS Congress works toward digital assets rules, but bills lack bipartisan supportCyber risk looms as digital bonds gain tractionDecentralized Finance and Digital Assets – Europe: Swiss digital bonds benefit from favorable existing and adapted federal lawsDeFi & Digital Assets: What is digital finance? Explanation and glossary

Moody's analysts Laline Carvalho-Neff and James Eck explain how reinsurers have boosted their profitability, even as natural catastrophes have grown more frequent and more severe.Speakers: Laline Carvalho-Neff, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody's Investors Service; James Eck, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Reinsurance – Global: Stable outlook as higher pricing restores more favorable risk and reward dynamicP&C Insurance and State Government — US: Sharp pricing hikes draw reinsurers to Florida; insurance market strains continueReinsurance – Global: Reinsurance prices to keep rising through 2024, buyer survey suggests

Moody's analysts discuss how a rate rise would affect Japan's banks, Swedish banks' high exposure to indebted real estate firms, and the stability of Swiss domestic bank deposits.Speakers: Tetsuya Yamamoto, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Louise Welin, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Goetz Thurm, VP Senior Analyst, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Myles Neligan, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Banks – Japan: A rise in domestic interest rates would bring more benefits than risksFAQ: Sweden's real estate turmoil creates risks for local banksBanks – Switzerland: Stable domestic deposits, strong liquidity reduce the risk of deposit outflows

Moody's analysts discuss the economic and credit outlook for China, including the role of local government financing vehicles (LGFVs) and their debt burdens, and the latest on the property sector.Speakers: Lillian Li, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Jessie Tung, VP-Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors ServiceHost: Vittoria Zoli, Analyst – Emerging Markets, Moody's Investors Service

Steve Tu discusses FedNow, a new US digital payments system, and why it could exacerbate deposit flight risk for banks. Farooq Khan explains the risks of higher interest rates for UK mortgage lenders.Speakers: Stephen Tu, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Farooq Khan, VP – Senior Analyst, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Myles Neligan, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Banks – North America: FedNow launch may lower transaction costs, but exacerbate funding risks for banksAsset and customer relations risks intensify for UK lenders as rates keep rising

Moody's analysts David Burger, Mark Wasden and Neal Epstein explain how differences in structure and asset risk give rise to divergent credit profiles among the three investment vehicles.Speakers: David Burger, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors Service; Mark Wasden, Senior Vice President, Moody's Investors Service; Neal Epstein, VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody's Investors ServiceHosts: Danielle Reed, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors Service; Aaron Johnson, VP – Senior Research Writer, Moody's Investors ServiceRelated Research:Private Credit – Cross Region: Middle-market CLOs, BDCs and closed-end funds: structures lead to divergent credit risks