SEC Investor Advisory Committee Meeting & NYC Comptroller Climate Actions
Upcoming SEC Investor Advisory Committee Meeting
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Investor Advisory Committee will meet on Thursday, December 4 at 10am ET. The agenda includes:
Regulatory Changes in Corporate Governance: A panel discussion on recent changes to the 14a-8 and the shareholder proposal process, the use of mandatory arbitration clauses, investor corporate engagement, and modifications to the proxy voting system. Panelists include James McRitchie, Nell Minow, Séverine Neervoort, Brad Goldberg, John Coates, and Elizabeth Bieber.
Tokenization of Equities: A panel discussion on how tokenization may be able to improve how public equities are currently issued, traded, and settled while still adhering to current investor protections and securities law.
NYC Comptroller Advises City Pensions to Drop BlackRock, Fidelity, and PanAgora
Last Wednesday, NYC Comptroller Brad Lander released a Net Zero Implementation Plan which recommends the trustees of New York City’s retirement systems to rebid their U.S. public equities index mandates with BlackRock and terminate those with Fidelity and PanAgora.
Missing the mark: This recommendation follows an analysis of the NYC’s 49 public markets managers’ decarbonization plans that were submitted to the Comptroller in June 2025. BlackRock, Fidelity, and PanAgora were the only three managers to not meet the city’s climate expectations to manage and mitigate climate risk in its portfolios.
Proxy issues: In particular, Comptroller Lander pointed to BlackRock’s new policy which terminated engagement on proxy voting issues with public companies, of which it owns more than 5%, as a “conservative interpretation” of recent SEC guidance.
Substantial holders: BlackRock is currently the pension system’s largest asset manager, managing $42.3 billion. Fidelity manages $384 million, and PanAgora manages $358 million.
Looking to the future: “The systemic risk of the climate crisis threatens the long-term value of New York City’s pension funds. Our Net Zero plan is a core part of our fiduciary duty to protect these assets,” stated Comptroller Lander.
Claims of politicization: BlackRock responded to Comptroller Lander’s announcement stating, “These statements are another instance of the politicization of public pension funds, which undermines the retirement security of hardworking New Yorkers.”
What We are Watching This Week
SEC Oversight: Chair Paul Atkins will not be a part of the House of Financial Service Committee’s oversight hearings tomorrow. We will keep you updated when he is called in front of the committee.
Navigating Physical Climate Risk Webinar: Join US SIF on Tuesday, December 2 at 2pm to explore how investors identify, assess, and manage physical climate risks across asset classes.