East West Bank - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

East West Bank is Medium Risk.

East West Bank often yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. East West Bank occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	Lower Risk
Employment Protection	Medium Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	Medium Risk
Funding	High Risk
Political Actions	Lower Risk

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

East West Bank states: “We reserve the right to close your account at any time with or without cause by giving oral, electronic or written notice to any of you” (1). East West Bank has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (2).

Criteria:

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

East West Bank does not appear to discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or beliefs (1).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

East West Bank does not provide viewpoint protections for employees (1).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

East West Bank supports ESG into its business practices (1). The company highlights DEI topics in its podcast and blog, such as promoting implicit bias testing and tying diversity and inclusion into job performance reviews (2)(3).

Criteria:

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

East West Bank pledged $25M to The Asian American Foundation’s AAPI Giving Challenge, which raised money for DEI-related causes such as diversity programs (1)(2). East West Bank partners with the Greenlining Institute, which engages in ESG and DEI advocacy (3)(4). East West Bank supports the California Reinvestment Coalition Resilience Fund, which “envisions a future where we reimagine systems of capital; where capital centers the needs of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) first and foremost” and advocates for California “to invest in BIPOC communities as we look toward a COVID-19 recovery: to defund police and build new systems that reinvest in building resiliency and make our communities whole” (5). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of East West Bank using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (6).

Criteria:

Uses corporate political actions and/or financial contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

East West Bank has not used its PAC donations for ideological purposes but has not reported on its lobbying at this time (1)(2)(3).