From being a go-to bank for US tech start-ups, SVB’s collapse was swift and chaotic. As investors and regulators pick through the wreckage, we look at how much of this story was actually about ESG. And we draw a bold line between financially relevant ESG risks and financially relevant financial risks.

Engagement, in tandem with capital allocation, is a key lever for institutional investors who wish to pursue net-zero targets.

Reducing emissions of greenhouse gas may mean that investors engage with companies lacking adequate net-zero targets. This post explores different engagement tools that investors can use to help net-zero laggards catch up to net-zero leaders. 

Investors have started to see the dollars and cents value of diversity on corporate boards and at all levels of an organization. The new Nasdaq rules seek to advance this cause, but will they work? We explore the question and look to a similar Canadian rule on the books since 2015.

AGL Energy, Australia’s largest electricity generator and polluter, abandoned plans to spin-off its coal assets after tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes bought shares to help block the move. It was a continuation of a trend we are seeing: the offloading or spinning off of pollutive assets away from the parent company. We discuss AGL’s attempt, this offloading trend, and where the company goes from here.

As Russia invaded Ukraine, endless briefing documents were thrust in front of company directors. Navigating supply chain disruptions, sanctions and a humanitarian crisis is not supposed to be easy. And as the war continues, investors will find that not all boards are equal. And war aside, Boeing’s board will be navigating a crisis of its own, following the fatal crash of a 737-800 in southern China.

Say-on-climate shareholder votes are on the rise globally. Are they a distraction to real climate efforts or an effective way for shareholders to engage management?

The Nasdaq stock exchange’s new diversity rules will impose board-diversity disclosure requirements on Nasdaq-listed companies. These new rules may nudge companies to improve the diversity of the boards or risk facing investor pressure.

Jack Dorsey, the eccentric and visionary co-founder of Twitter, announced he was stepping down on Monday. Parag Agrawal, the chief technology officer, will replace him as CEO. We discuss what this move means for the governance of Twitter, for Block (previously called Square), and for the world of tech in general.

Institutional investors may have more exposure to cryptocurrency risk than they realize. We find that cryptocurrencies were a part of business for at least 52 companies covered by MSCI ESG Research, including 26 MSCI ACWI Index constituents.

The historic win of at least two seats on Exxon Mobil’s board by activist shareholder Engine No. 1 signals a dramatic shift in investors’ thinking about climate change — and in their willingness to vote for climate action. But there is a deeper story.

Are companies aligning CEO pay with long-term performance? Or, put another way, are directors incentivizing executives to drive the long-term success of the companies they run? We found evidence that pay and performance are misaligned for many U.S. CEOs.