U.S. SEC chair provides more detail on new disclosure rules, Treasury market reform

1:42 pm Wednesday, June 23rd, 2021

By Katanga Johnson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may require public companies to publish data on a whole range of new areas, including greenhouse gas emissions, workforce turnover and diversity, as its new chairman looks to enhance the SEC’s disclosure regime.

Gary Gensler, SEC chair, told a financial services industry audience during the annual London City Week he has also asked staff to consider potential requirements for companies that have made “forward-looking” climate commitments and have significant operations in foreign jurisdictions with required climate-related targets.

“I’ve asked staff to propose recommendations for the commission’s consideration on human capital disclosure. This builds on past agency work and could include a number of metrics, such as workforce turnover, skills and development training, compensation, benefits, workforce demographics including diversity, and health and safety,” Gensler said.

Gensler has already said https://www.reuters.com/business/sustainable-business/us-sec-chair-planing-new-workforce-data-disclosures-public-companies-2021-05-13 the agency plans to introduce new climate-related and human capital rules as it steps up environmental, social and governance (ESG) disclosure and last week closed a public consultation on a potential new rule.

His comments on Wednesday provide the clearest preview of what a rule would mandate when it is proposed, likely in October, based on the SEC’s public agenda.

Investor groups have asked the agency for more corporate disclosures on climate change and human capital, while business interests have pushed back, Reuters has reported.

Gensler also said he had asked staff to explore structural changes to the U.S. Treasury cash and repo markets which have experienced a handful of liquidity crunches in recent years.

While the Federal Reserve has previously suggested https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-treasury-markets-analysis-idUSKBN28Q1EV introducing central clearing was an option to help grease the wheels of the Treasury market, Gensler said he had asked staff to “consider the potential benefits” of clearing — signaling a potential shakeup for the world’s largest market long term.

(Reporting by Katanga Johnson in WashingtonAdditional reporting by Huw Jones in LondonEditing by David Goodman, Jonathan Oatis and Jane Merriman)