Here they go again. The GOP AGs have sent another tut-tut letter, this time to the two biggest proxy advisory firms, ISS and Glass-Lewis, again apparently drafted by corporations behind the Republican Attorneys General Association. It has a lot of footnotes and legal language and reminds them that they have to comply with various laws…
Category: Uncategorized
Global Risks Report: World Economic Forum
Note to those who claim ESG is not based exclusively on assessments of risk and return. The World Economic Forum report on global risks makes it clear that climate change is a key factor. From the key findings: Cost of living dominates global risks in the next two years while climate action failure dominates the…
Enhanced Proxy Voting Disclosure Requirements for Investment Funds
On November 2, 2022, the SEC voted 3 to 2 (Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda dissenting) to adopt amendments to Form N-PX to enhance the information mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and certain other registered funds (“funds”) report about their proxy votes (together, the “final rules”). In addition, the final rules will require disclosure on Form…
The Flaw in Anti-ESG Logic: Financial Interests of Companies Like Meta Don’t Always Align with Those of Its Shareholders
In the last few months, there has been an organized effort to falsely argue that companies and institutional investors are inappropriately prioritizing social and environmental responsibility over financial returns. The effort includes state treasurers from Texas, West Virginia, and Florida, as well as anti-ESG activist and fund manager Vivek Ramaswamy. These critics charge that when companies…
Goldman Sachs to Pay $4 Million to Settle Investigation Over ESG Funds – WSJ
WASHINGTON—Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s asset-management arm agreed Tuesday to pay $4 million to settle a regulatory investigation into how it managed mutual funds and other products that pick stocks based on environmental, social and governance criteria.The Securities and Exchange Commission said Goldman marketed the ESG funds and a similar investment strategy without always following a…
Betsy Atkins — How to be a Better Director Right From the Start
There’s no director we admire more than Betsy Atkins and her advice is always worthwhile.
Cryptocurrency 2.0 is Just Stone Soup
Remember the fable of stone soup? A traveler comes to a town famous for the miserliness of its inhabitants. He tells them he has the secret of making soup from a stone. They are very excited about this money-saving possibility and gather around him as he places a stone in a vat of boiling water….
Why IBM Doesn’t Do (Direct) Political Contributions – The New York Times
In a New York Times interview, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna spoke about corporations taking political positions and making contributions. He does not discuss political involvement via groups like the Business Roundtable. IBM has a history of involving itself in difficult social and political issues, including being among the first companies to offer benefits to same-sex…
Is Elon Musk Inching Away From Twitter
When Twitter’s board abruptly changed its tune on his offer to buy the company — from poison pill to LFG!! — bankers surmised what had happened. Goldman Sachs, on behalf of Twitter, had gone out and asked every other potential buyer it could think of to swoop in and make a better deal — and…
JPMorgan Fined $200 Million Over Employees’ Use of WhatsApp and Other Messaging Apps – WSJ
This happened the same week CEO Jamie Dimon was given a “surprise” retention bonus of 1.5 million shares. What message does this send to employees, customers, and shareholders? The brokerage arm of JPMorgan Chase & Co. on Friday agreed to pay $200 million in fines and admit that it failed to keep track of employees’…
ValueEdge Advisors 