On April 9, 2021, the SEC’s Division of Examinations (f.k.a. OCIE) (the “
Alert”) highlighting observations from exams of registered investment advisers (“
RIAs”), registered investment companies, and private funds recommending or offering environmental, social, and governance (“
ESG”) -related investment products and services.[i] The Alert, which was closely followed by a public statement regarding the Alert from SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce (the “
Peirce Statement”),[ii] is part of a flurry of recent SEC activity regarding ESG-related investment products that appears to have arisen in response to the rapid growth of investor demand for such products and a corresponding increase in the number of ESG investment products and services offered to investors.[iii] For example, as noted in our recent legal alert,