Morningstar CEO speaks out against travel ban
The chief executive of Morningstar in the US has made his position clear against US President Donald Trump's travel ban, noting its consequences on the firm's employees as well as the businesses and industries the firm analyses.
Kunal Kapoor posted a note to his Morningstar team and on LinkedIn stating that he personally believed that reliable immigration was a vital part of the firm's talent development strategy, and argued for the need for diversity to better serve different investor needs.
"We embrace our colleagues and clients of diverse race, religion, gender, orientation, culture, and geography because it makes us better business men and women able to understand and service diverse investor needs and problems," Kapoor wrote.
"We believe these things as a company, and I believe them personally as a business leader and as an immigrant myself."
The comments followed the issuing of an executive order by Trump to ban citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the US for 90 days.
Kapoor noted that while the firm had contemplated the increasing effects of regulation and policy on business and investing, they had not contemplated immigration policy.
"While we are a small firm in the global community, we have a strong and steady voice. Which means we have a leadership responsibility to play our part during times of change and uncertainty," he said.
Kapoor said the firm was monitoring the situation to assess how it would affect the firm's employees travelling globally as well as to gauge long-term consequences. He asked team members to contact human resources representatives if they were concerned about the status of their colleagues.
"We are actively reviewing our immigration data so we know who in our community may be affected and can take appropriate action."
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