Here are a few analogies to describe MSCI:

1. MSCI is like S&P Global for global market indexes and ESG investment tools.
2. MSCI is like Bloomberg, but specializing in providing the widely used global market indexes and ESG data for portfolio benchmarking and analysis.

• Indexes: MSCI provides a wide range of global equity, fixed income, ESG, and climate indexes that serve as benchmarks for investment funds and portfolios.
• Analytics: They offer risk management, performance attribution, and portfolio construction analytics software and data to help institutional investors make informed decisions.
• ESG & Climate Solutions: MSCI delivers comprehensive ESG ratings, research, data, and climate risk analysis tools to integrate sustainability considerations into investment processes.
• Real Estate Tools: They provide data, benchmarks, and analytics focused on the global private real estate market for portfolio managers and investors.

MSCI (Morgan Stanley Capital International) primarily sells its products and services to other companies (business-to-business or B2B), rather than directly to individuals. Its major customers are institutional investors and other financial entities that rely on MSCI's global equity indexes, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) research, and portfolio analytics tools.

The primary categories of MSCI's customers include:

• Asset Managers and Asset Owners: This is the largest segment, including mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), pension funds, endowments, and sovereign wealth funds. They license MSCI indexes for creating passive investment products, benchmarking active strategies, and for portfolio construction and risk management.
• Banks and Broker-Dealers: These institutions utilize MSCI's data, indexes, and analytics for research, structuring financial products, and risk management.
• Wealth Managers and Private Banks: They use MSCI's tools and data for client portfolio management, asset allocation, and reporting.
• Hedge Funds and Other Alternative Asset Managers: These clients leverage MSCI's data and analytics for sophisticated investment strategies and risk assessment.
• Corporations: Increasingly, corporations subscribe to MSCI's ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) research and ratings for strategic planning, reporting, and investor relations.

While MSCI has thousands of institutional clients globally, it does not typically disclose a definitive list of its "major customers" by name due to confidentiality. However, based on the widespread use of MSCI's indexes and other products in the financial industry, particularly by large asset managers and financial institutions, the following public companies are representative of its significant customer base:

• BlackRock, Inc. (symbol: BLK): As the world's largest asset manager, BlackRock's iShares ETF family heavily relies on MSCI indexes for many of its global, international, and thematic equity ETFs.
• State Street Corporation (symbol: STT): Another major global financial services and asset management company, State Street's SPDR ETFs also utilize MSCI indexes, and its institutional clients use MSCI's analytics and data.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co. (symbol: JPM): A diversified global financial services firm whose various divisions, including asset management, private banking, and investment banking, would be significant users of MSCI's risk management, performance analytics, and index data.
• Morgan Stanley (symbol: MS): Given the historical ties and its extensive operations in wealth management, investment banking, and asset management, Morgan Stanley is a key institutional client for MSCI's range of products and services.
• Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (symbol: GS): Similar to JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs' asset management division and other institutional businesses are likely significant users of MSCI's analytical and data offerings.

Henry A. Fernandez, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Henry A. Fernandez has been the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MSCI since 1998. He led the firm's transition to a fully independent, public company in 2007. Prior to becoming CEO of MSCI, he was a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley, where he worked in emerging markets business strategy, equity derivatives sales and trading, mergers and acquisitions, mortgage-backed securities, and corporate finance from 1983 to 1991 and again from 1994 to 1998. Before his tenure at Morgan Stanley, Mr. Fernandez was President of the private equity firm HispaniMedia, Inc., and he also founded Ferco Partners, Inc., a private equity investment firm in Mexico. Earlier in his career, from 1976 to 1979, he served as a diplomat in the Nicaraguan Embassy in Washington, D.C.

Andrew C. Wiechmann, Chief Financial Officer

Andrew C. Wiechmann has served as MSCI's Chief Financial Officer since September 2020. He joined MSCI in July 2012, initially as Head of Strategy and Corporate Development. He also held roles as Head of Investor Relations and Head of Financial Planning & Analysis, and served as Interim Chief Financial Officer from March to May 2019. Before joining MSCI, Mr. Wiechmann worked as an investment banker at Morgan Stanley, where he handled M&A and capital markets transactions for financial technology and specialty finance companies, including MSCI's IPO in 2007.

Baer Pettit, President and Chief Operating Officer

Baer Pettit has been the President of MSCI since October 2017 and Chief Operating Officer since January 2020. He also became a Director of the company in January 2023. Prior to these roles, he held various positions at MSCI, including Chief Operating Officer, Head of Product, Head of Index Products, Head of Marketing, and Head of Client Coverage. Before joining MSCI, Mr. Pettit spent eight years at Bloomberg and also worked at Morgan Stanley Asset Management and Barclays De Zoete Wedd.

Jigar Thakkar, Chief Technology Officer, Head of Engineering

Jigar Thakkar joined MSCI as Chief Technology Officer and Head of Engineering in July 2018. In this role, he leads innovation and product development across engineering technology services and data science operations for MSCI's investment products. Prior to MSCI, Mr. Thakkar had a significant 19-year tenure at Microsoft, where he served as Corporate Vice President leading software engineering for Microsoft Teams and Skype for Business. He also held various leadership positions within Microsoft focusing on engineering management for applications like Office 365, Dynamics CRM, Bing, Windows, and MSN.

Jeremy Baskin, Managing Director - Global Head of Client Segment Strategy

Jeremy Baskin is the Managing Director and Global Head of Client Segment Strategy at MSCI Inc. He joined MSCI in September 2017 as Head of Client Coverage for the Americas. In this role, he was responsible for overseeing MSCI's sales, consulting, and client service teams in the Americas. Before joining MSCI, Mr. Baskin served as Global Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer for Rosenberg Equities, AXA Investment Managers, where he led the investment firm back to profitability. He has over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, with a focus on investment management, including portfolio management, research, risk management, trading, compliance, and sales management operations. He also held board positions on AXA's Investment Managers Management Board and various AXA IM global legal entities.

Key Risks to MSCI (MSCI)

1. Securities Fraud Investigation and Legal Scrutiny: MSCI Inc. is currently facing a securities fraud investigation following a significant 24.3% drop in its Q4 profit. This investigation stems from allegations of misrepresentation, which could lead to significant legal, financial, and reputational damage for the company. The scrutiny also raises questions about the sustainability of its dividend growth strategy.
2. ESG Growth Challenges and Market Uncertainty: MSCI, a prominent provider in the ESG and climate data sector, is experiencing a notable slowdown in its ESG-related revenue growth. In Q2 2024, this segment's revenue growth fell to 12% from 50% in early 2022. This deceleration is attributed to broader market uncertainty, increasing regulatory pressures, and growing skepticism towards ESG investments, particularly influenced by political opposition to ESG regulations in the U.S. This slowdown is a significant challenge as ESG and Climate Solutions represent a key revenue segment and growth opportunity for the company.
3. Cybersecurity and Evolving Regulatory Landscape: MSCI's operations and reputation face significant threats from cybersecurity risks, including potential cyber-attacks and data breaches. As a company dealing with vast amounts of sensitive financial data, a breach could have severe consequences. Furthermore, the company is exposed to evolving regulatory risks, particularly with new laws affecting benchmarks and ESG ratings, which could impose substantial compliance burdens and impact its product offerings. The increasing integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) also introduces new risks related to potential biases, inaccuracies, and heightened regulatory oversight.

The significant strengthening and consolidation of its primary competitors, particularly S&P Global (following its acquisition of IHS Markit) and the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG, following its acquisition of Refinitiv). These mergers have created more formidable, integrated data and index powerhouses with expanded capabilities across indices, analytics, and ESG solutions, intensifying competition for MSCI's market share and future growth opportunities.

MSCI Inc. (symbol: MSCI) operates in several key areas within the global financial ecosystem, providing investment decision support tools and services. The addressable markets for its main products and services are significant globally.

• Indexes: MSCI is a leading provider of equity, fixed income, real estate, ESG, and climate indexes. As of 2025, funds worth over 16.5 trillion US dollars were based on MSCI indices globally. Public equities alone constituted an approximate 77 trillion US dollar market globally as of the end of 2023, representing about one-third of the global market portfolio. The broader global market portfolio, which includes public stocks, bonds, and private assets, had an estimated market value of 271 trillion US dollars as of the end of 2023. Approximately 18.3 trillion US dollars in assets under management (AUM) are benchmarked to MSCI equity indexes globally.
• ESG and Climate Solutions: MSCI offers a range of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) data, ratings, and climate finance products. The global ESG investing market was valued at an estimated 25.10 trillion US dollars in 2023, with projections to grow to 79.71 trillion US dollars by 2030 (global). North America accounted for the largest share of this market, holding a 36.2% revenue share in 2023. Globally, 856 billion US dollars are benchmarked to MSCI Sustainability and Climate Equity Indexes.
• Real Estate Products: MSCI provides real estate indices and analytics for private assets. The professionally managed global real estate investment market was valued at 12.5 trillion US dollars in 2024. The U.S. market specifically amounted to 4.9 trillion US dollars in 2024.
• Analytics: MSCI provides multi-asset portfolio analysis tools, risk management, and performance analytics. While a specific standalone addressable market size for "Analytics" was not identified, these tools are integral to the broader investment management market that MSCI serves, supporting portfolio construction and risk management for asset managers, pension funds, hedge funds, and financial institutions globally. MSCI's analytics division showed a 7% growth in Q2 2025.

1. Growth in Recurring Subscription Revenues: MSCI consistently emphasizes the importance of its recurring subscription revenue across all its segments, including Index, Analytics, Sustainability & Climate, and Private Assets. In Q3 2025, the organic recurring subscription run rate increased by 7.4%. This reflects a stable and predictable revenue stream driven by continuous client demand for its core offerings.
2. Increase in Asset-Based Fees: A significant driver of revenue growth for MSCI is the rise in asset-based fees, which are closely tied to the growth in Assets Under Management (AUM) linked to MSCI equity indexes, encompassing both Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and non-ETF indexed funds. The company reported a 17.1% increase in asset-based fees in Q3 2025, supported by record AUM levels of approximately $6.4 trillion in products linked to MSCI indexes.
3. Expansion of Sustainability and Climate Segment: Despite some short-term market uncertainties, the Sustainability and Climate segment (formerly ESG & Climate) remains a critical long-term growth engine for MSCI. The increasing demand for sustainability analytics, climate-related products, ratings, and screening solutions is fueled by global regulatory pushes for greater transparency in sustainable investing, such as the EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the SEC's climate disclosure rules. This segment's operating revenues grew by 7.7% year-over-year in Q3 2025.
4. Growth in Private Assets Segment and New Client Expansion: MSCI is strategically expanding its presence in the private assets market, recognizing the accelerating shift of investments into alternative asset classes. The Private Assets segment, which includes solutions like Private Capital Solutions, saw a 9.7% year-over-year improvement in operating revenues in Q3 2025. The company's focus on innovation, including the launch of new products like a private credit factor model and an AI-powered Private Asset Classification Standard (PAX), aims to penetrate deeper into new client segments and asset classes.
5. Product Innovation and Technology Integration (including AI): MSCI is consistently investing in innovation, particularly in leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance existing products and develop new capabilities. This strategic focus on technology and product development is expected to drive future growth by providing advanced decision support tools and services to the global investment community, leading to stronger client engagement and market penetration.

[1] Share Repurchases

• MSCI's Board of Directors authorized a new share repurchase program of up to $3.0 billion on October 25, 2025, superseding the prior program from October 2024.
• The company repurchased $1.398 billion in shares in 2022, $504.188 million in 2023, and $885.266 million in 2024.
• For the period ending September 30, 2025, MSCI had $1.226 billion worth of share buybacks.

[4] Outbound Investments

• MSCI has made 10 acquisitions, with peak activity in 2023 (3 acquisitions), 2024 (1 acquisition), and 2021 (1 acquisition).
• In August 2023, MSCI acquired the remaining 66% of The Burgiss Group, LLC for $697 million in cash, bringing total investment since January 2020 to $913 million. Burgiss provides data, analytics, and technology solutions for private assets.
• The company acquired Foxberry, an index management solutions provider, in February 2024.

[5] Capital Expenditures

• MSCI projects capital expenditures for the full year 2025 to be in the range of $115 million to $125 million.
• Capital expenditures in the first quarter of 2025 were $32.9 million.
• These investments are strategically focused on enhancing capabilities and expanding market presence.