Statement on Russian Investments

The Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church (CFB) believes that for both ethical and fiduciary reasons, Russian securities should not form any part of our clients’ investment portfolios.

The Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church and Epworth Investment Management do not hold any Russian securities directly, but both organisations have small indirect exposure to Russian companies through holdings of emerging market-focused vehicles.

We are now in the process of eliminating this exposure and we will exclude Russia from our investment universe.

The war is far from over, with no clear path to a resolution which will end the suffering of the Ukrainian people.

In this most urgent time, the CFB affirms its support for all proposed and existing measures to sanction Russia and exclude it from the global financial system.

We also call upon our colleagues in the financial services industry, especially those from major financial institutions that serve the Russian state, Russian companies, or Russian oligarchs, to immediately withdraw their service provision.