据报道，贝莱德副主席Philipp Hildebrand在致机构客户的信中表示，加入NZAM“引起了对贝莱德业务的混淆，并使我们受到各种公职人员的法律质询”。Trump returns to power again, reigniting the anti-"zero" wave.ESGAs the largest Asset Management firm in the world, Blackrock was once the number one advocate for ESG, with related Assets under management reaching as high as 1 trillion USD.
Is Trump ending ESG? The leading firm Blackrock announces its exit from the "Net Zero Financial Alliance."
On Thursday, the world's largest Asset Management firm Blackrock announced its withdrawal from the "Net Zero Asset Managers initiative (NZAM)." This follows the earlier departures of the six major Banks in the USA and the world's second-largest Asset Management firm.
According to reports, Blackrock's Vice Chairman Philipp Hildebrand stated in a letter to Institutional clients that joining NZAM "has caused confusion regarding Blackrock's Business and subjected us to various legal inquiries from public officials."
NZAM was established in 2020 to appeal to and assist asset managers in achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Previously, Blackrock had become one of the most well-known advocates for ESG and sustainable development, having publicly committed that "companies that do not take active measures in carbon emissions will be excluded from the investment portfolio," with related Assets under management totaling as high as 1 trillion USD.
With Trump's imminent assumption of the presidency of the USA, the anti-ESG sentiment may rise again. Trump previously withdrew from the Paris Agreement during his last term and has repeatedly publicly stated that climate change is "one of the biggest scams of all time."
Republican-led states, conservative groups, and some businesses in the USA have frequently initiated anti-ESG movements in recent years.
Since Blackrock proposed the position that "climate risk is investment risk" in 2020, the company has been under continuous attack from conservative politicians in the USA. They have initiated lawsuits, regulatory investigations, and boycott campaigns, accusing the company managing 11.5 trillion dollars in Assets of using its substantial holdings to promote climate activism and other forms of "woke capitalism."
At the end of last year, 11 Republican-led states sued Blackrock, Vanguard, and State Street, accusing them of conspiring to limit Coal supplies and advancing a "destructive, politicized environmental agenda."
Federal Banks and Energy regulatory agencies have also launched investigations to determine whether large asset management companies have fulfilled their regulatory obligations as passive investors.
In fact, Blackrock's shareholder proposal support rate for environmental and social issues dropped from 47% in 2021 to 4% last year. Tracey Lewis, head of climate policy at the public interest organization, believes:
"This withdrawal essentially indicates that their statements in 2020 and 2021 were merely performance and marketing."
However, Blackrock simultaneously emphasized in its letter that the withdrawal from NZAM "will not change the way we develop products and solutions or manage portfolios. Blackrock's active portfolio managers will continue to assess significant climate-related risks, as well as other investment risks."
