Ginny Cleaveland, Deputy Press Secretary, Fossil-Free Finance, Sierra Club, ginny.cleaveland@sierraclub.org, 415-508-8498
JEFFERSON CITY – Today the Missouri state treasurer announced plans to cut ties with major asset manager BlackRock and withdraw approximately $500 million in state money from the firm due to its stated sustainability policies. The move puts Missouri in a similar position to other Republican-led states, including Louisiana, Texas, and West Virginia, who cut off some business with the asset management firm over its position on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues.
Despite some movement by BlackRock to promote sustainable investing, the world’s largest asset manager remains a major investor in fossil fuels, even weakening its support for climate-related proposals this shareholder season. However, BlackRock seems undeterred by the recent moves in Republican states, telling Reuters that “while the actions of some elected officials have attracted media headlines, they do not reflect the totality of our clients’ investment decisions.”
In response to the news, the Sierra Club’s Missouri Chapter issued the following statement:
“This move is just the latest flavor of climate denial cooked up by right-wing politicians and their fossil fuel industry donors. It’s part of a broader attempt to prevent businesses like BlackRock from addressing urgent climate-related financial risks affecting our state,” said Michael Berg, Political Director in the Sierra Club’s Missouri Chapter. “In reality, BlackRock continues to be a major financier of fossil fuels, and it isn’t doing nearly enough to address the destructive impacts of its investments. At the end of the day, when states cut off financial firms to score political points, the real impact is felt by the taxpayers and retirees who bear the costs of these theatrics.”
A study revealed that a similar move in Texas preventing the state from doing business with certain banks that had reduced their business with gun manufacturers ended up costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars in just its first year of implementation.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.