Originally published July 7, 2023 6:37 am PDT
In a recent development on Capitol Hill, Republican Representatives Jim Jordan, Thomas Massie, and Dan Bishop, have launched an investigation into prominent asset management companies, including BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street, over their Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices.
In a letter addressed to Michael Bloomberg and Mary Schapiro, co-chair and vice-chair of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) respectively, the lawmakers have raised concerns about potential violations of U.S. antitrust laws.
In their detailed letter, the lawmakers express concerns that the GFANZ and the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative (NZAM), by coordinating their members’ agreements to “decarbonize” their assets under management and reduce emissions to net zero, could have “potentially harmful effects on Americans’ freedom and economic well-being.”
“We write because BlackRock, Inc. (BlackRock) is potentially violating U.S. antitrust law by entering into agreements to ‘decarbonize’ its assets under management and reduce emissions to net zero,” they write.
BlackRock, an official partner of the World Economic Forum (WEF), has total assets under management (AUM) of $9 trillion worldwide with controlling shares in virtually every major company across every industry. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink is a WEF board member.
State Street is also an official WEF member.
They claim that reaching net zero would “require draconian ‘declines in the use of coal, oil and gas'” and could lead to the restriction of output, increasing prices, and depriving businesses of investments and consumers of choices.
The Committee on the Judiciary, which is currently conducting oversight of the adequacy and enforcement of U.S. antitrust laws, now seeks documents and communications relating to the creation, mission, goals, or founding of GFANZ and NZAM from January 1, 2020, to the present.
They argue that the “collusive agreements harm competition and consumers and are illegal under the Sherman Act.”
They further assert that the prohibition is not just limited to regulating prices or limiting production but extends to any “coercive activity that prevents its victims from making free choices between market alternatives.”
The letter requests information on GFANZ and NZAM’s roles in coordinating agreements among their members to “decarbonize” assets under management and reduce emissions to net zero, as well as how asset managers, including BlackRock, State Street Global Advisors, Arjuna Capital, and Trillium Asset Management, can or should advance decarbonization and net zero emissions goals.
The representatives have asked for a response no later than 5:00 p.m. EDT on July 20, 2023, and have instructed the recipients to preserve all existing and future records and materials relating to the topics addressed in the letter.
This move signifies an ongoing concern among some Republican lawmakers about the increasing trend among financial institutions towards ESG practices, raising questions about the potential impact on traditional energy sectors and the wider economy.
As the investigation unfolds, it could have significant implications for the future of ESG investing in the United States.
Read the letter, first obtained by The Daily Caller, below:
