IDC Update

IDC Update: April 11, 2024

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Join IDC at the 2024 Fund Directors Workshop – May 21–23 

Registration is open for the 2024 Fund Directors Workshop (Tuesday, May 21 – Thursday, May 23) at the JW Marriott in Washington, DC, held in conjunction with ICI’s Leadership Summit. Join fund directors for unique networking opportunities, including breakfast with peer-to-peer discussions on strategic priorities of fund boards, and timely, insightful programming on key subjects relevant to fund directors such as “Board Oversight of ETF Developments” and “The Modern 15(c) Process: Considerations for Fund Boards.” Conference registration may be accessed HERE. 

Registration Open for IDC’s Webinar on the “Nuts and Bolts of AI: A Primer for Fund Boards” 

Join IDC on Wednesday, May 1, from 2:00 to 3:15 p.m. ET for a Primer for Fund Boards on the Nuts and Bolts of Artificial Intelligence (AI). David Blass (Partner, Simpson Thacher) will moderate a discussion with Samantha Kappagoda (Independent Director, Credit Suisse Mutual Funds and Chief Data Scientist, Numerati Partners LLC) and Tim Persons (Principal, Digital Assurance and Transparency, PwC). Speakers will provide a high-level overview of AI, and then will discuss the fund industry’s approach to the use of AI and its potential implications for the oversight role of fund directors. Please register HERE. 

Registration Open for Chapter Meetings in Boston, Ohio, Denver and Chicago 

IDC’s chapter meetings are informal and interactive gatherings for independent and interested fund directors. They are free and open to directors of member funds. Chapter meetings are an ideal opportunity to engage in peer-to-peer discussions relating to your roles as fund directors. Chapter meetings also address governance practices, policy developments, and other current topics relevant to fund boards. The following chapter meetings are currently open for registration.  

IDC will hold its meeting for fund directors based in Boston on Wednesday, April 24, at State Street (One Congress Street, 11th Floor, Boston, MA 02114). We will be joined by Matthew Bartolini, CFA, Managing Director at State Street Global Advisors and Head of SDPR® Americas Research. Please register HERE. 

IDC will hold its meeting for fund directors based in Ohio on Tuesday, April 30, at PricewaterhouseCoopers’ office in Columbus, Ohio (41 S. High Street, Ste. 2500, Columbus, OH 43215). We will be joined by three representatives of PwC: David Trerice, Asset and Wealth Management Governance Leader; Declan Byrne, Mutual Fund Research and Analytics Leader; and Melissa Chorey, Assurance Partner. Please register HERE. 

IDC will hold its meeting for fund directors based in Denver on Tuesday, April 30, at Charles Schwab in Lone Tree, Colorado (9899 Schwab Way, Lone Tree, CO 80124). Please register HERE. For those directors interested, ICI and the Denver Area 1940 Act Group will hold a networking event celebrating the 100th anniversary of the mutual fund at 3:00 p.m. at the same location. You can register for the latter event HERE. 

IDC will hold its meeting for fund directors based in Chicago on Wednesday, May 8 at Northern Trust (50 LaSalle Street, Chicago, IL 60603). We will be joined by guest speakers Angelo Manioudakis, Global CIO, Northern Trust Asset Management, and Darek Wojnar, Senior Advisor, Registered Funds, Northern Trust Asset Management. Please register HERE. 

Please see below for the dates of other regional chapter meetings in 2024. 

Support IDC Connections Pilot Program  

IDC has piloted a program to connect board-ready diverse candidates with members of the IDC community. If you know of a diverse board-ready candidate who would like to have a 30-minute conversation with a seasoned independent director, please submit this form.  

If you are a seasoned independent director who is interested in helping promote fund board diversity and can engage in a 30-minute conversation with a diverse board-ready candidate, please submit this form. 

Last Call: IDC Webinar on “Board Oversight of Operational Risk” 

Join IDC on Tuesday, April 16, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. ET for an insightful webinar on Board Oversight of Operational Risk. Andy Iseman (Independent Trustee, Pacific Select Fund) will moderate a discussion with Kelly O’Donnell (Director, TA and Operations, ICI) and Natalie Wagner (Senior Vice President, Mutual Fund Chief Compliance Officer, Natixis Loomis). Panelists will offer their insights into operational risks associated with service provider oversight, risk assessments of cyber and privacy programs by fund management, and more. Please register HERE. 

SEC Stays Climate Disclosure Rules for Public Companies 

As reported in a recent IDC Update, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) finalized requirements for public companies to report certain greenhouse gas emissions and disclose climate-related risks to their business. After several parties challenged the rulemaking in federal courts of appeals, the petitions for review were consolidated in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. On April 4, the SEC voluntarily stayed the new rules, pending the court’s review. In its Order Issuing Stay, the SEC stated that “given the procedural complexities accompanying the consolidation and litigation of the large number of petitions for review of the Final Rules, [an SEC] stay will facilitate the orderly judicial resolution of those challenges and allow the court of appeals to focus on deciding the merits.” The SEC said it “will continue vigorously defending the Final Rules’ validity in court and looks forward to expeditious resolution of the litigation.” 

Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming Events 

All times are shown in eastern time (ET), unless otherwise noted. 

IDC Conferences 

2024 Schedule 

2025 Schedule 

  • Fund Directors Workshop, April 30–May 2 (Washington, DC) 
  • Fund Directors Conference, October 27–29 (Scottsdale, AZ) 

Webinar 

Foundations for Fund Directors®

Chapter Meetings 

Industry Segment Meeting 

  • Audit Committee Chairs, May 14, 2:00 p.m. 

A list of IDC events can be found on IDC’s website. Please contact Paul Mussoni for additional information. 

In Case You Missed Recent IDC Webinars or IDC Update Editions 

Be sure to check out our recent webinars available on-demand: 

To access all of IDC’s archived content, please click here.