The California Democrat sent a letter to industry advocacy groups seeking information on which companies have and have not divested from Russia and what the divestments entail. Recipients of the letter included the American Bankers Association, American Council of Life Insurers, American Fintech Council, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the American Investment Council.
Waters praised the voluntary divestments announced so far, but said Congress does not have a complete picture of the extent of U.S. businesses' pullout from Russia.
"I have been heartened by how many companies in the financial services industry and in corporate America have taken actions above and beyond those explicitly called for by U.S. sanctions," Waters wrote. "Even though multiple companies have voluntarily divested from Russia, the [Financial Services] Committee currently lacks a clear picture of the extent of these divestments."
Numerous companies, from major accounting firms such as Deloitte and KPMG, to Goldman Sachs to large international law firms, have said they are reducing or winding down their activities in Russia. Among the notable holdouts are major cryptocurrency exchanges such as Binance and Coinbase, which have emphasized their efforts to comply with sanctions but have refused calls to cut off all Russian users from their services.
The letter instructed the advocacy groups to identify which of their members have wound down activities in Russia and which have not. They should also detail the specific divestment actions taken, while companies that are currently engaged in business activity in Russia should explain "what their plans are to either wind-down or end such activities, or the reasons why they plan to continue such activities," the letter said.
The groups should also detail their member companies' sanctions compliance efforts, Waters said. She has requested comprehensive answers within 20 days of the advocacy groups receiving the letter.
Waters compared the current situation to economic boycotts protesting apartheid in South Africa.
"Having spent years before coming to Congress pushing for an economic boycott to end Apartheid in South Africa, I know that when the full might of the U.S. economy is applied against countries that commit atrocities, we can bring about real and lasting change for the benefit of all," Waters wrote.
Representatives for Financial Services Committee Democrats did not immediately respond to a request for further comment.
--Additional reporting by Dorothy Atkins and Aebra Coe. Editing by Vaqas Asghar.
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