House committee launches investigation into BlackRock over China investment
Zachary Halaschak
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A House committee is demanding that BlackRock turn over documents related to allegations that it facilitated U.S. investment in blacklisted Chinese companies.
The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party announced on Tuesday it would launch an investigation into the world’s largest asset manager alongside index provider MSCI.
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Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and ranking member Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) said in a letter to BlackRock CEO Larry Fink that his firm invests or enables the investment of U.S. savings into Chinese companies blacklisted by the United States.
“Our review has shown that, as a direct result of decisions made by (BlackRock/MSCI), these Americans are now unwittingly funding PRC (People’s Republic of China) companies that develop and build weapons” for the Chinese military, the two wrote.
They said that by facilitating flows of U.S. capital into such companies, BlackRock and MSCI are “exacerbating an already significant national security threat and undermining American values.”
The committee is now demanding that the firms hand over a list of all the companies included on MSCI indexes, an in-depth description of what factors the firms consider when including companies in indexes, and policies and procedures pertaining to conflicts of interest.
“Across just five funds, we approximate that BlackRock has invested more than $429 million in PRC companies that pose national security risks to and act directly against the interests of the United States,” the letter reads. “It is unconscionable for any U.S. company to profit from investments that fuel the military advancement of America’s foremost foreign adversary and facilitate human rights abuses.”
BlackRock is being compelled by the committee, which doesn’t have lawmaking authority but does have subpoena power, to turn over the information by Aug. 14.
BlackRock, which has faced scrutiny in the past for its ties to China, has denied any impropriety and said it would work with the committee on the matter.
“With all investments in China and markets around the world, BlackRock complies with all applicable U.S. government laws. We will continue engaging with the Select Committee directly on the issues raised,” the money manager said in a statement.
Conservative nonprofit group Consumers’ Research has attacked BlackRock and Fink for working so closely with China in the past, and last year, it launched a multimillion-dollar ad campaign attacking the firm for its forays into the Chinese market.
Will Hild, the executive director of Consumers’ Research, praised the investigation in a Tuesday statement.
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“The fact that BlackRock and its CEO Larry Fink are using hard-working Americans’ retirement dollars to fund the Chinese Communist Party is alarming, but hardly surprising,” he said. “I applaud the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party for its efforts to bring these facts to light.”
BlackRock’s stock fell about by about 0.9% after the investigation came to light on Tuesday.