For Immediate Release: March 18, 2022
Contact: Marty Karlon, Director of Communications & Legislative Affairs, (603) 410-3594; public_relations@nhrs.org
CONCORD, NH – The Independent Investment Committee (IIC) of the New Hampshire Retirement System (NHRS, the retirement system) unanimously voted today to direct its external separate-account managers to sell the Russian assets held in the NHRS portfolio as soon as practical and prudent.
The motion also directed external separate-account managers to not purchase any Russian assets until the IIC has specifically granted such permission.
NHRS has three investments in Russian assets. As of March 1, the combined value of these investments was just under $4 million, or 0.00035 percent of a total portfolio of nearly $11.5 billion.
The specific investments are:
- The Artisan Partners portfolio (foreign stocks) contains Sberbank and Norilsk Nickel held as American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) valued as of February 28, 2022, at approximately $450,000 and $3.0 million, respectively. ADRs are a US bank-issued certificate representing shares in a foreign company for trade on American stock exchanges. There is currently no market for these ADRs.
- The Brandywine Global Investment Management portfolio (foreign bonds) contains a Russian bond. It is a Russian Sovereign bond with a fair market value of approximately $400,000 as of March 1, 2022. The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued sanctions against Russia and as a result NHRS cannot sell or trade this bond.
About NHRS
NHRS provides retirement, disability, and death benefits to its eligible members and their beneficiaries. The State of New Hampshire and more than 460 local government employers participate in NHRS for their employees, teachers, firefighters, and police officers. NHRS has approximately 48,500 active members and 41,000 benefit recipients. NHRS administers a defined benefit plan qualified as a tax-exempt entity under sections 401(a) and 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code.
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