FRANKFORT, Ky. —
A top official with Kentucky's teacher retirement system fired back at critics of the pension's investment in Russia's largest financial institution on Monday.
But a former whistleblower who helped expose the state's underfunded pension system 10 years ago says there is reason to be concerned.
Reports of the state pension's stake in Sberbank surfaced on social media last week. One post claimed the pension was the second-largest shareholder of the Russian bank. Others noted the $3 million loss incurred when the shares were sold last month.
"TRS is not now, nor has it ever been, the number two shareholder in Sberbank," said Beau Barnes, general counsel and deputy executive secretary of the teachers' retirement system, speaking to the public pension oversight board on Monday in Frankfort.
Kentucky's TRS amassed a $15 million stake in Sberbank over several years, beginning in 2017, Barnes said. Because of worldwide sanctions, the pension sold its shares on February 23, one day before Russian invaded Ukraine, he said.
Dividend earnings made up for the $3 million loss, Barnes said, although he did not cite specific numbers.
"So actually, TRS realized a net gain, albeit a slight net gain, in its Sberbank holdings," he said.
Barnes called the idea that Kentucky's $15 million investment could constitute the second-largest share of a multi-billion-dollar financial institution "almost ridiculous."
But while he sought to minimize concern over the sale and ownership,...
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