ADL-JLens Report: BDS Divestment Could Cost NYC Pension Funds $37 Billion Over Decade
A new report by the Anti-Defamation League and its affiliate JLens estimates that applying BDS-aligned divestment strategies to New York City's five public pension funds could result in more than $37.55 billion in forgone value over the next decade. The analysis compared the 10-year historical performance of a broadly diversified large-cap U.S. equity portfolio against one excluding 47 major American companies targeted by the BDS movement, finding an approximately two-percentage-point annual performance gap. The report is released amid Mayor Zohran Mamdani's publicly stated support for BDS and his administration's representation on each of the city's pension boards.
The Anti-Defamation League and JLens released a report on June 10, 2026, projecting that BDS-aligned divestment from NYC's pension funds could cost taxpayers $37.55 billion over ten years. The study modeled two hypothetical large-cap U.S. equity portfolios over the prior decade — one including and one excluding 47 BDS-targeted firms such as Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft, Boeing, and JPMorgan Chase — and found the exclusionary portfolio underperformed by roughly two percentage points annually (11.7% vs. 13.7%). Applied to the city's estimated large-cap U.S. public equity allocations, that gap translates to the projected loss figure across all five funds: the Teachers' Retirement System ($15.09B), NYC Employees' Retirement System ($10.91B), Police Pension Fund ($7.13B), Fire Pension Fund ($3.02B), and Board of Education Retirement System ($1.41B). The report warns that any investment shortfall would need to be offset by higher employer contributions from the city, potentially forcing cuts to municipal services or tax increases. The methodology was reviewed by Columbia Law Professor Joshua Mitts, who said it is consistent with standard financial practice for evaluating exclusionary strategies. The report builds on JLens' 2024 analysis that estimated BDS-aligned strategies could cost the 100 largest university endowments $33 billion over a decade.
What's missing
The report is produced by the ADL and JLens, organizations with explicit advocacy positions against BDS, and no independent financial analysis or peer-reviewed validation of the projections is cited beyond a single legal-methodology review. The analysis assumes the historical two-percentage-point performance gap will persist over the next decade, a significant assumption given that past performance of technology-heavy portfolios may not repeat. No response or rebuttal from BDS proponents, Mayor Mamdani's office, or Comptroller Levine's office is included.
How coverage differed
Both sources are right-leaning outlets and frame the report as a warning against Mayor Mamdani's BDS sympathies; the New York Post places greater emphasis on Mamdani's political role and the mayoral administration's direct influence over pension boards, while the Jerusalem Post focuses more on the broader anti-semitism framing offered by ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt.
What different sources said
- The Jerusalem PostRight
BDS could cost NYC taxpayers $37 billion, ADL-JLens analysis finds
- New York PostRight
Divestment from pro-Israel firms could cost NYC $37B: report
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