Funding Quantum

Dr. Tan Eng Joo is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Business at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, where he teaches portfolio management, and impact investing and green finance. He has a PhD in Finance from the University of Minnesota and the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing.

His research examines the implications of financial intermediation for asset pricing and corporate finance, and has been published in the European Accounting Review, the Journal of Business Finance and Accounting, and the Journal of Financial Research, at which he has also received an Outstanding Article Award. His works have been presented at the London Business School, the American Accounting Association Annual Meeting, and the Financial Intermediation Research Society Conference.

Hardik Shah, CFA, is a seasoned sustainability and ESG leader with over 16 years of experience spanning ESG research and integration, climate and carbon markets advisory, and business intelligence—bringing a deep understanding of how sustainability factors impact investment performance.

At DSP, he spearheads ESG and sustainable investing initiatives, partnering with investment teams to embed ESG insights into investment processes and deliver integrated solutions for clients in India and globally.

Previously, at GMO, Hardik built and led the firm’s global ESG capability across asset classes. His work included developing proprietary tools such as a country-level ESG model and the GMO ESG Score, supporting ESG integration and stewardship efforts across portfolios, and designing fund-level ESG disclosures.

Earlier, he led a global ESG research team at Sustainalytics, contributed to ESG Ratings at MSCI, and advised on carbon credit projects at Ernst & Young, helping register assets under the UNFCCC’s Clean Development Mechanism.

Hardik holds an engineering degree, a postgraduate diploma in Finance, the CFA charter, and sustainability credentials including FSA (SASB) and SCR (GARP)—reinforcing his ability to align ESG insights with long-term investment value.

Kok Kah Fai, CFA, is Head of APAC for BCA Research, the industry leading independent investment research provider. The BCA research insights drive many of the investment management and asset allocation decisions across traditional asset managers, alternatives, wealth managers, banks and asset owners.

His prior experience included building out the Asia/APAC businesses for Rimes Technologies (a market leader in investment/ESG data management), RiskMetrics (ex-JP Morgan Risk Analytics now part of MSCI) as well as Bloomberg Portfolio Analytics (PORT). His subject matter expertise includes investment analysis, portfolio construction/backtesting and portfolio credit/market risk methodologies (CreditMetrics/RiskMetrics), including historical/predictive stress testing. He is also certified in performance attribution analysis including methodologies for equities, fixed income and balanced portfolio, as well as GIPS requirements. Kah Fai also delivers foundational financial literacy training via Credit Counselling Singapore and AIDHA.

Kah Fai graduated summa cum laude in Mechanical Engineering & Aerospace Engineering, with a Certificate in Engineering Management Science, from Princeton University. He is also a Member of Phi Beta Kappa, Tau Beta Pi and Sigma Xi Honor Societies. His professional certifications include the CFA® designation, Professional Risk Manager (PRM), Certificate in Performance Measurement (CIPM) and Certificate in ESG Investing.

Sannya Joseph, CFA, is an ESG Client Engagement Manager for APAC who focuses on helping financial institutions integrate sustainability into their workflows and reporting requirements. She also worked as a Lead Quantitative Specialist for 5 years, focusing on the Investment Management segment, specifically equities.

In this role she worked with asset managers across the globe, helping them integrate quant investing techniques within their existing stock selection framework. 

She began her career with S&P Global in 2009 as part of the technology division that focuses on developing quantitative products. She holds a CFA, Engineering degree in Information Technology and a certification in Financial Risk and Investment Management from the Indian Institute of Management – Calcutta.

Allen Cheong, CFA, has more than 25 years of extensive experience in investment banking, venture investment and entrepreneurial startups. He has helped many entrepreneurs grow their business through mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, fund raisings and restructurings. A seasoned investment banker in established financial institutions such as DBS, OCBC and Daiwa Capital Markets, he spent most of his career in the financial industry, specialising in corporate finance services, with in-depth experience advising, executing and structuring M&A and IPO deals in Singapore and in the region. He has completed more than 40 deals with deal value totaling more than S$10 billion in diverse sectors spanning TMTs, financial, healthcare, energy, real estate, consumer and industrials. Allen currently provides consultancy and training for corporates, institutions and schools in the areas of corporate finance, investments and ESG. He has been awarded the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing, and the Certified Sustainability Practitioner (Advanced Edition) from the Center for Sustainability and Excellence. Allen graduated with an MBA from Chicago Booth School of Business, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst^®, Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst and Chartered Valuer and Appraiser. He is an active community volunteer, currently serving as Chairman of Watten Residents’ Network.