On February 3, the Chair of the House Financial Services Committee, Patrick McHenry, announced the establishment of a nine-person Republican ESG Working Group to “combat the threat to our capital markets posed by those on the...more
Attacks on “ESG investing” in the U.S. continues to intensify as additional Republican lawmakers take aim at financial institutions’ alleged “ESG agenda.” Citing an effort to “promote the depoliticization of our capital...more
On January 10, Isabel Schnabel, a member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB), gave a speech at an international symposium on central bank independence on monetary policy tightening and the green...more
2/17/2023
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
European Central Bank ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment ,
Lending ,
Paris Agreement
On January 25, Representatives Sean Casten and Juan Vargas announced the launch of the Congressional Sustainable Investment Caucus (CSIC). According to the press releases, the “CSIC will bring together Members of Congress...more
Twenty-five Republican state attorneys general, along with two energy companies, have commenced an action against the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) seeking to “hold unlawful and set aside” rules governing how retirement plan...more
On December 16, the Amsterdam headquartered bank ABN AMRO announced the publication of a climate strategy and its decision to join the Net Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA). ABN AMRO stated that it is “committed to making a...more
1/4/2023
/ Banks ,
Business Strategies ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financing ,
Net Zero ,
Netherlands ,
Popular
In early 2022, the ESG ratings industry attracted attention when electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Inc. was dropped from the S&P 500 ESG Index. Explaining its decision, S&P cited perceived deficiencies in many ESG areas,...more
It is hardly news that ESG investing is a significant aspect of the asset management industry. According to Barron’s, $400 billion was invested in U.S. mutual funds and assets that have an ESG orientation in 2021. However,...more
Summary -
In an important development, on April 28, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) commenced an action in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in which it asserted that...more
5/3/2022
/ Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
False Statements ,
Intent to Defraud ,
Investment Fraud ,
Mining ,
Misleading Statements ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On March 30, 2022, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) requested comment on draft principles “that would provide a high-level framework for the safe and sound management of exposures to climate-related...more
On March 21, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) proposed far-reaching amendments to Regulation S-K and Regulation S-X that would mandate significant additional climate-related disclosures. If...more
3/24/2022
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Comment ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulation S-K ,
Regulation S-X ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
In anticipation of New York Fashion Week, lawmakers remind us that this season’s haute couture is not the only thing heating up right now. After years of global warming and environmental, social and governance (ESG) topics...more
2/11/2022
/ Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fashion Design ,
Fashion Industry ,
Manufacturers ,
New York ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Retailers ,
State Legislatures ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability
Introduction -
The asset management industry has been sounding the alarm for some time about the risks and opportunities posed by climate change. While private equity giant, Carlyle, is the most recent financial institution...more
On October 21, 2021, the Financial Stability Oversight Council (“FSOC”), established in 2010 by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to respond to emerging threats to the stability of the U.S....more
10/25/2021
/ Banking Sector ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
FSOC ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Controls ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Threat Management
As investors’ calls for greater climate-related corporate accountability grow louder, the “E” in ESG—environmental, social and governance—looms larger than ever, particularly from the perspective of directors facing oversight...more