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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti filed a lawsuit against BlackRock Inc. Monday, claiming the investment company misled Tennessee customers about how it’s fighting climate change, violating consumer protection laws.

BlackRock joined the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative in 2021 and Climate Action 100+ in 2020. As part of joining those groups, the state said, BlackRock made promises aimed at fighting climate change and did not make that clear to customers.

Skrmetti said that BlackRock presents itself to customers as strictly profit-driven, but has also made promises to invest in fighting climate change through its memberships with the climate initiatives. This misled customers because BlackRock made business decisions based on fighting climate change, not making customers money, according to the attorney general.

“We allege that BlackRock’s inconsistent statements about its investment strategies deprived consumers of the ability to make an informed choice,” Skrmetti said in a statement. “Some public statements show a company that focuses exclusively on return on investment, others show a company that gives special consideration to environmental factors. Ultimately, I want to make certain that corporations, no matter their size, treat Tennessee consumers fairly and honestly.”

BlackRock directly contested Skrmetti’s claims in a statement given to WVLT News, instead saying that it does disclose its practices to customers.

We reject the Attorney General’s claims and will vigorously contest any accusations that BlackRock violated Tennessee’s consumer protection laws. Contrary to the Attorney General’s claims, BlackRock fully and accurately discloses our investment practices and our approach to proxy voting.

On behalf of our clients, BlackRock has invested approximately $40 billion in Tennessee, and we are helping more than 600,000 hard-working Tennesseans retire with dignity. We are proud of our contribution and committed to the future in Tennessee.

BlackRock

It’s worth noting that BlackRock’s participation in both groups was announced publicly by either the groups or the company itself when they signed two and three years ago.

In BlackRock’s Jan. 6, 2020 statement on joining Climate Action 100+, the investment agency said it would, among other things, work with companies it invests in to make sure they are disclosing the environmental impacts of their practices. In that statement, BlackRock also acknowledged that its primary duty is to shareholders and customers, saying “BlackRock owes fiduciary and contractual duties to its clients.”

A similar statement on BlackRock joining the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative is also publicly available.

However, the state has claimed that BlackRock’s customer disclosures don’t mention the climate goals, saying “BlackRock has told consumers elsewhere that the only consideration driving its investment decisions is return on investment.”

In the lawsuit, the state summarizes by saying BlackRock is inconsistent in how it presents itself to customers; on one hand, claiming to be only profit-driven, but on the other, making promises to help fight climate change. The state is asking for injunctive relief, civil penalties and recoupment of the state’s costs.

Pr23 59 Complaint by WVLT News on Scribd

from:    https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/tennessee-sues-blackrock-investment-agency-claims-it-misled-customers-in-climate-change-initiatives/ar-AA1lJRDB