A White House order that prevents U.S. investors from buying stock of Chinese public companies with military ties is proving challenging, the Council of Institutional Investors and several member pension funds said in a letter to the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control.
That office is responsible for carrying out the Nov. 12 executive order by providing a list of the sanctioned entities, but "it is challenging for investors to use" and the deadline "is just weeks away," said the letter sent Dec. 13.
The letter was signed by CII Executive Director Amy Borrus and officials with the $428.4 billion California Public Employees' Retirement System; the $254.7 billion California State Teachers' Retirement System; the $211 billion New York City Retirement Systems; Florida State Board of Administration, which oversees a total of $216.9 billion; and $97.5 billion Ohio Public Employees Retirement System.
The investors are asking OFAC to publish commonly used investment identifiers like tickers "so that investors have the information they need to comply swiftly and completely with the order" before the Jan. 11 effective date for the restrictions, the letter said.
