Panel Discussion: Private Funds/Markets and Outbound Investments in Countries of Concern

Investors in private funds and in the private markets are increasingly concerned that a lack of transparency around outbound investments, especially those in "countries of concern", may be funding human rights abuses, the military-industrial complex of countries, and the development of sensitive technology. 

This panel will first discuss the problems the lack of transparency into outbound investments in countries of concern pose and how the SEC as a disclosure focused agency can provide investors, many of whom manage money on behalf of public employees, with additional information that would allow them to decide the suitability of their investments. These disclosures could also help investors better assess how exposed their investments may be to geopolitical risk.

Moderated by:

• Andrew Park, IAC Market Structure Subcommittee Chair; Senior 
  Policy Analyst, Americans for Financial Reform

Panelists:

• Christopher Ailman, Chief Investment Officer, California 
  State Teachers Retirement Systems (CalSTRS)
• Sarah Bauerle Danzman, Associate Professor in International 
  Studies at the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies at Indiana University Bloomington; Nonresident Senior Fellow Atlantic Council
• Peter Harrell, former Senior Director for International Economics 
  and Competitiveness for the White House's National Security Council
• Marianne Dwight, Chief Development Officer, Strategic Insight Group
• Emily Kilcrease, Senior Fellow & Director of the Energy, 
  Economics, and Security Program at the Center for New American Security

Panel Discussion: Ensuring Digital Engagement Practices Responsibly Expand Investment Opportunities

This panel will focus on current challenges and potential improvements to the use of digital engagement practices by investment firms as they attract new investors – particularly those with lower incomes or from underrepresented groups. Panelists will provide an overview of the concerns and challenges currently being observed and discuss ideas for potential reforms that could create better outcomes for new investors and help expand investing to underserved groups.

Moderated by:

• Paul Roye, Chair, IAC Access & Inclusion Working Group; Vice Chair, IAC Disclosure Subcommittee; Former SVP, Capital Research & Management Co.

Panelists:

• Algernon Austin, Director for Race and Economic Justice, Center for Economic & Policy Research. Article. Written statement.
• Melanie Cherdack, Acting Associate Director, Practitioner-in-Residence, University of Miami School of Law Investor Rights Clinic. Comment Letter
• Sivananth Ramachandran, CFA, CIPM, Director of Capital Markets Policy, CFA Institute; Author, Investment Gamification and the Implications for Capital Markets, Presentation
• Jasmin Sethi, Associate Director of Policy Research, Morningstar, Inc.; and CEO of Sethi Clarity Advisers. Morningstar Comment Letter re DEP
• James Tierney, Assistant Professor of Law, University of Nebraska College of Law (to summer 2023); Assistant Professor of Law, Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology (beginning summer 2023); Author, Investment Games; Co-Author, The Wrong Way to Regulate Gamified Investing, Prepared Remarks, Presentation

Panel Discussion Regarding Audit Committee Workload and Transparency

This panel will focus on the role of the audit committee, which is rapidly changing, where many audit committees now oversee a variety of emerging risks while balancing an ever-increasing workload. Simultaneously, there is a larger focus on the audit itself with the PCAOB taking a fresh look at auditing standards. Risks continue to emerge and evolve. The presenters and the panel will explore how audit committees are keeping pace with shifting responsibilities and priorities, and whether existing audit committee disclosures adequately benefit investor needs.

Moderated by:

• James Andrus, Vice Chair Investor as Owner Subcommittee; and 
  Vice President Sustainability Global Markets, Franklin Templeton.

Presentations:

• Audit Committee: The Kitchen Sink of the Board
  • Lauren Cunningham, Keith Stanga Professor of Accounting, University of Tennessee
• Audit Committee Transparency Barometer
  • Vanessa Teitelbaum, Senior Director, Professional Practice, The Center for Audit Quality

Panelists:

• Robert H. Herz, Audit Committee Chair, Morgan Stanley; and President, Robert H. Herz, LLC.
• David Herzog, MetLife Audit Committee Chair; former AIG CFO
• Anthony Anderson, Exelon Corporation Audit Committee Chair; 
  former Vice Chair and Midwest Area Managing Partner of Ernst & Young LLP.
• Sheila Hooda, ScION Tech Growth I and II Audit Committee
  Chair; CEO, Alpha Advisory Partners

Discussion of a Recommendation regarding Single-Stock ETFs (Andrew)

Subcommittee and Working Group Reports

Disclosure Subcommittee (Christine)
Access and Inclusion Working Group (Paul R.)

Closing Remarks and Adjourn