In Focus

CII Opens Registration for Fall Conference in Minneapolis

Mark your calendars and book your rooms—registration for CII’s fall conference is now open.  CII members from across the globe will gather in Minneapolis September 16-18 to share ideas and best practices on key issues affecting institutional investors. CII-hosted sessions kick off with SEC Commissioner Robert Jackson Jr. and include discussions on CIO perspectives on fiduciary duty and environmental, social and governance issues; gender pay equity; use of the proxy vote on auditors and audit committee members; corporate governance in bankruptcy; and challenges in renewable energy deployment and transition. Renowned behavioral economics expert Dan Ariely, a professor of psychology at Duke University, will give the keynote address at lunch on September 17 on the secret of motivation at work. Member-hosted events at the conference cover a range of topics, including contested M&A, artificial intelligence and investor engagement on opioids and other pharmaceuticals. Members can also sign up for a Master Class on evaluating pay for performance and the Engagement Exchange, a platform for company-shareholder dialogs. CII is also hosting private discussion and dinner forums for pension fund trustees. 

House Committee Presses Big Banks on Diversity and Inclusion

House Financial Services Committee Chair Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), chair of the committee's Diversity and Inclusion Subcommittee, sent letters to 37 bank holding companies with more than $50 billion in assets asking them to report on their diversity and inclusion data and policies from 2015 to the present. The lawmakers asked the companies to disclose information including: the gender, race and ethnic identity of their employees; the number and dollar value invested with minority- and women-owned vendors and asset managers as compared to all vendor and asset manager investments; and the size of their staff and budget dedicated to diversity initiatives.