NY state comptroller divesting retirement fund from Russia

By AP 26 March 2022, 2:40 am

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Exterior view of the New York state Capitol, Jan. 17, 2021, in Albany, New York (AP Photo/Hans Pennink)

ALBANY, New York — New York state’s public pension fund will be getting rid of any Russian investments, state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli announces.

DiNapoli had announced a freeze on any new investments and a review of current ones in the days soon after Russia started its invasion of Ukraine, leading to the decision to divest.

“Russia’s unconscionable and immoral invasion has brought devastation and destruction to Ukraine,” DiNapoli says in a statement, adding that the “violent and unpredictable foreign policy” made the country “an unacceptable investment risk.”

The New York State Common Retirement Fund has a value of almost $280 billion, with about an estimated $110 million invested in Russian companies.