The US data provider is the licensor for more than $17 trillion in investment assets linked to MSCI indices worldwide. MSCI collects fees for the use of its indices, which generated $1.6 billion in revenue and $1.1 billion in net profit last year.
Since the IPO in 2007, the stock has achieved a return of over 2,200% – roughly eight times the performance of the MSCI World during the same period (+285%).
Three Growth Areas According to CEO Henry Fernandez
In the interview, MSCI CEO Henry Fernandez names three key trends for the index business:
- Stärkere Nachfrage nach europäischen und Schwellenländer-Indizes – auch wegen des schwachen US-Dollars.
- Wachstum bei Faktor-Indizes, etwa für Qualität, niedrige Volatilität oder hohe Dividenden.
- Neue Indizes für nicht börsennotierte Anlagen, die auf Daten von Private-Equity-Fonds basieren.
Fernandez, who led the spin-off of Morgan Stanley Capital International in 2007, is the largest individual shareholder of the company with around 3% – and benefits himself from the ongoing boom of his own brand.
MSCI is much more than an index provider – it is a global standard for capital markets. While investors use the MSCI World as a benchmark, the company itself generates far higher returns.
