As with other firms the state considers a “boycotter” of the fossil-fuel sector, UBS has faced pushback from Republicans.
October 10, 2022
UBS’ underwriting business took another hit arising from the perception of the firm as hostile to the fossil-fuel industry, according to news reports.
Last week, the Texas Natural Gas Securitization Finance Corp. announced an underwriting syndicate for a municipal-bond deal worth $3.4 billion — a record transaction in the state — with UBS absent from it, Bloomberg writes, citing Lee Deviney, executive director of the Texas Public Finance Authority, the state agency overseeing the sale.
UBS had been among the underwriters approved in May by the issuer, according to the news service.
However, in August, Texas comptroller Glenn Hegar released a list of 10 firms he said were “boycotting” energy companies in favor of sustainable investing, Bloomberg writes.
UBS being on that list may have harmed its ability to get past the state’s attorney general, Republican Ken Paxton, whose office must approve most municipal-bond deals in Texas, according to the news service.
A UBS spokesperson in New York didn’t have an immediate comment, according to Bloomberg.
The move is the latest example of fallout from UBS’ messaging on the fossil fuel industry.
Last month, Paxton’s office blocked UBS from underwriting a bond deal for Texas’ Normangee Independent School District.
UBS isn’t the only firm losing out on lucrative contracts as a result of its stated commitment to — or mixed messaging on — sustainability and energy.
BlackRock, which was also on Hegar’s list released in August, had $794 million withdrawn from its funds in Louisiana recently, with state treasurer John Schroder saying he couldn’t “support an institution that would deny our state the benefit of one of its most robust assets.”