Missouri has pulled $500 million out of pension funds managed by BlackRock Inc, state Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick said on Tuesday, over the asset manager’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) “priority” over shareholder returns.
Several Republican-led states have sought to cut business ties with BlackRock over its ESG push, with Louisiana earlier this month saying it would pull $794 million out of the company’s funds.
While environmentalists have protested that the world’s largest asset manager does too little to press for change at fossil fuel portfolio companies, Republican politicians have accused it of boycotting energy stocks.
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