California Insurance coverage Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Monday issued a discover to all insurance coverage firms doing enterprise within the state to evaluate their monetary holdings and take instant steps to establish and divest from any direct investments in Russian property or property that might assist Russia within the wake of its invasion of Ukraine.
“California stands with the world neighborhood in rejecting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its assault on freedom and equality,” Lara stated in an announcement. “Because the nation’s largest insurance coverage market and the fourth largest insurance coverage market on this planet, we should not tolerate California customers’ insurance coverage premiums funding an authoritarian regime that invades a sovereign authorities, terrorizes its inhabitants, and is an enemy of free expression, speech, meeting, press, and equality for LGBTQ+ folks, ladies, and ethnic and spiritual minorities. Insurance coverage firms should ship a loud and clear message of solidarity with the folks of Ukraine and the worldwide neighborhood by withdrawing any monetary assist for the Russian regime.”
The legislative leaders of the California Senate and Meeting Insurance coverage Committees joined Lara in calling on insurance coverage firms to take instant motion.
“The folks of California are united in our resolve to assist the folks of Ukraine, and insurance coverage firms have an obligation to make use of their market energy for good, to not assist a corrupt regime that’s an enemy of freedom,” state Sen. Susan Rubio (D-Baldwin Park), chair of the California Senate Insurance coverage Committee, stated in an announcement. “I’m able to assist the objectives that Commissioner Lara has laid out for insurance coverage firms to divest all investments that profit the Russian authorities’s marketing campaign of tyranny.”
An announcement from Assemblyman Tom Daly (D-Anaheim), chair of the Meeting Insurance coverage Committee, reads:
“Californians be a part of the world in denouncing Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine and its continued heinous violations of human rights. Due to the scale and energy of California’s insurance coverage market, actions by insurance coverage firms doing enterprise right here to reevaluate their investments and maintain Russia accountable will likely be felt around the globe.”
Direct investments of U.S.-based insurers uncovered to Ukraine and Russia reportedly embody almost $2 billion in bonds whereas oblique investments in companies that derive a share of earnings from Russia could also be extra substantial.
Within the Discover, Commissioner Lara alerted insurance coverage firms that he’ll use all cures accessible beneath California insurance coverage legislation to push the business to reveal that they’re aligning with the worldwide neighborhood to carry Russia accountable.
“If insurance coverage firms don’t voluntarily act now to eliminate direct investments in Russia, I’ll discover all choices to compel them to comply with by means of,” he stated.
Matters
Carriers
California
Russia
Interested by Carriers?
Get computerized alerts for this subject.
