During the encampment of Students for Palestine Justice (SJP) and Young Democratic Socialists of America at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, organizers I was demanded to On Monday, a divestment took place from a company that sells war-related products to Israel. This includes investments in the UW System Trust Fund, which is managed by the UW Board of Trustees.
December 2023 report The long-term fund from the Regent Business and Finance Committee had total assets of $556 million, divided between private and public market investments. Private market investments managed by StepStone total $68 million in JPMorgan, Adams Street Partners and TRG Forestry Fund.
The total public market investment is $487 million, comprised of six exchange-traded funds (ETFs) managed by the multinational investment firm BlackRock. According to the report, ETFs are pooled investments that can consist of individual company stocks or other ETFs.
One ETFThe UW System Trust Fund holds $32 million in 2023 and is a hedged U.S. dollar index that tracks the value of the U.S. dollar relative to the United States’ most important trading partners.Israeli new shekel is approx. 0.4% Total amount of the fund as of July 2023.
Three of the ETFs do not invest directly in Israel, instead investing primarily in real estate, government bonds, and corporate bonds. Another ETF invests in a variety of emerging markets without investing directly in Israel.
What ETFs do protesters want the UW System Trust Fund to sell?
Camp organizer Abby Smith told the Daily Cardinal that the movement is calling for a withdrawal from BlackRock. ACWI indexnot all BlackRock ETFs in which UW System invests.
“Divestment is important because [it’s] “This is the most direct way that student groups can demonstrate that they can attack the American fighting machine,” Smith said. “We do not support the university’s continued support of genocide in Gaza.”
The UW System Trust Fund is the largest investor in BlackRock’s ACWI Index, holding more than $249 million as of its December report. Camp organizers said they want UW-Madison to withdraw from the ETF because of its investments in defense contractors and other companies profiting from the Gaza conflict.
US top 10 defense The contractor is approx. 1.1% BlackRock ACWI Index value as of April 29, 2024, according to Cardinal Financial Review. This includes Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Northup Grumman, and others.
MSCI ESGturns out to be a screening service for institutional investors that control environmental, social and governance standards. 0.49% 80% of companies participating in ETFs are involved in controversial weapons. This could include cluster bombs, landmines, depleted uranium weapons, biological or chemical weapons, and incendiary weapons.
The camp’s demands include the sale of companies. identified AFSC has provided Israel with weapons and other military equipment used in attacks in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, and Syria since October 2023. The companies identified by AFSC are: 4.56% According to a financial study by Cardinal, the ETF’s
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The UW System Trust Fund’s total investments in AFSC-listed companies are approximately $11.3 million. If the protesters’ demands are met, the UW System would have to sell all of the $249 million it invested in BlackRock’s ACWI index.
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