Ensign Peak Advisors (EP) is the investment manager for assets of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).. Nielsen’s estimate of Ensign’s assets places the Mormon investment organization among some of the country’s wealthiest companies and charities. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, Reporter covering corporate accountability. A former investment manager alleges in a whistleblower complaint to the Internal Revenue Service that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has amassed about $100 billion in accounts intended for charitable purposes, according to a copy of the complaint obtained by The Washington Post. Roger Clarke, the head of Ensign Peak Advisors, and members of the church’s Presiding Bishopric sat for interviews with the Journal for the story. Have you worked for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day-Saints? It details a church fortune far exceeding past estimates and encompassing stocks, bonds and cash. Ensign Peak Advisors, Inc 13F annual report Ensign Peak Advisors, Inc is an investment fund managing more than $36.8 billion ran by Don Clouse. “We appreciate your years of service and the contributions you have made for the church,” the letter concluded. On Monday, the church told The Post that through its involvement in the City Creek mall, it had “increased local economic activity during a financial downturn and attracted visitors and residents to Salt Lake City’s historic downtown.”. The church did not respond to detailed questions from The Post about the complaint and said in a statement Monday that it does not discuss specific financial transactions. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. Ensign Peak Advisors is based out of Salt Lake City. The church also owns real estate worth billions of dollars, according to the complaint, which focuses on surplus tithing money and says that the church may have additional holdings not managed by Ensign. This permits it to operate as a nonprofit and to make money largely free from U.S. taxes. The church said in a report last year that its charitable arm had spent $2.2 billion in assistance since 1985, but did not provide a breakdown on spending. Some of that mystery evaporated late last year when a former employee revealed in a whistleblower complaint with the Internal Revenue Service that the fund, called Ensign Peak Advisors, … In a declaration signed under penalty of perjury, Nielsen urges the IRS to strip the nonprofit of its tax-exempt status and alleges that Ensign could owe billions in taxes. Nielsen did not respond to repeated phone calls and emails seeking comment. Details of the church’s expenditures on charitable work are not publicly available, but in a lecture at the University of Oxford in 2016, a senior elder said the church had spent about $40 million a year over the past 30 years on welfare, humanitarian aid and other international projects. It details a church fortune far exceeding past estimates and encompassing stocks, bonds and cash. The mall, partly owned by the church, had also been hit by the financial crisis. By comparison, the Catholic church in the United States was reported in 2005 to receive $8 billion in annual tithes. In its statement Tuesday, the church said the “vast majority” of the funds it receives from donations are “used immediately to meet the needs of the growing Church,” including temples, education and missionary work. Mormons, like members of some other faith groups, are asked to contribute 10 percent of their income to the church, a practice known as tithing. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. Ensign Peak Advisors (Ensign) is the investment manager for assets of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).. “Claims being currently circulated are based on a narrow perspective and limited information,” said a statement attributed to the church’s First Presidency, its top governing body. The complaint provides a window into the closely held finances of one of the nation’s most visible religious organizations, based in Salt Lake City. These documents were sent to the IRS whistleblower office in Ogden, Utah, together with a thumb drive containing digital versions of documents and emails that Nielsen collected during his time at Ensign, the complaint says. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. The confidential document, received by the IRS on Nov. 21, accuses church leaders of misleading members — and possibly breaching federal tax rules — by stockpiling their surplus donations instead of using them for charitable works. “Once that money comes in, it’s gotta go back out,” he said. Looking at the other organizations shouldn’t be a means of justifying hoarding.”. Little has been publicly disclosed by Ensign, whose website address redirects readers to the church’s homepage. What this NAACP leader and pastor learned from Martin Luther King Jr. A new political home for the ‘moveable middle’: Welcome to the Giraffe Party, Chris Evans reveals how he watched ‘Avengers: Endgame’ for the first time, Larry Scott to step down as Pac-12 commissioner this summer, The Utah Jazz have been literally the best team in the NBA during their 6-game win streak, ‘Star Wars’ launches new ‘High Republic’ digital shorts. According to the complaint, Ensign’s president, Roger Clarke, has told others that the amassed funds would be used in the event of the second coming of Christ. While about $6 billion of that income is used to cover annual operating costs, the remaining $1 billion or so is transferred to Ensign, which plows some into an investment portfolio to generate returns, according to the complaint. No documents are provided to support this claim, which is attributed to information David Nielsen gleaned from working at the company. The Washington Post has a story about a whistleblower’s disclosures to the IRS that Ensign Peak Advisors, Inc, founded in 1997, has accumulated over $100 billion in assets without ever … On Tuesday, after the first version of this story was published, the church said it takes seriously its responsiblity to care for members’ donations. Individual shares of stock identified as part of the investment fund reportedly include Apple, Chevron, Visa, JPMorgan Chase, Home Depot, Amazon, and Google. Nielsen’s complaint is sharply critical of church leaders for continuing to ask for tithes, even from members who are struggling financially, while the church sits on a fortune. newsletter, The Mormon Church Amassed $100 Billion. On those returns, Ensign has sometimes stated that it held $1 million, other times “more than $1,000,000,” and it once left this section of the paperwork unfilled. “I wish to give the entire church the assurance that tithing funds have not and will not be used to acquire this property. I know they’ve looked into investment … If Ensign Peak is unlevered and long-only, then the $32b number should be pretty accurate as the amount of capital it has in US stock investments. Lars Nielsen said in a statement to The Post that his brother asked him to write an exposé on his former employer. The whistleblower allegation that Ensign Peak Advisors, has in its over 20 years of existence accumulated over $100 billion dollars in excess tithes and the investment returns thereon is … Nor will they be used in developing it for commercial purposes,” Hinckley said when plans for the mall were unveiled in 2003. He is seeking a reward from the IRS, which offers whistleblowers a cut of unpaid taxes that it recovers. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc is located in Salt Lake City, UT, United States and is part of the Asset Management Industry. A Utah resident was among the dozens of people President Donald Trump pardoned Tuesday on his last full day in office. The largest investments … Those assets are money-consuming.”. Company profile page for Ensign Peak Advisors Inc including stock price, company news, press releases, executives, board members, and contact information The Wall Street Journal on Saturday published a story on Ensign Peak Advisors, the investment arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While the church may argue Ensign contributes to a broader religious and charitable mission, as a separate corporate entity, it must show that “it furthers a charitable purpose exclusively on its own,” Hackney said. No threshold for this test is specified, and the agency instead considers examples case by case. Citing an internal presentation that he includes as an exhibit, Nielsen alleges that in 2009, Ensign spent funds on rescuing the insurance firm, Beneficial Life, which was suffering from its exposure to mortgage-backed securities amid the financial crisis. The complaint filed by Nielsen comprised a signed Form 211, the formal piece of IRS paperwork for reporting tax avoidance, a notarized cover letter to officials, plus the 74-page narrative document co-written with his brother in which he detailed his allegations at length. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest private philanthropic foundation in the world at $47.8 billion. This limited type of tax return requires Ensign to disclose the total value of its holdings, which the complaint asserts, has for years run to tens of billions of dollars. In June, the church raised the monthly charge paid by most families to cover the cost of their children serving as missionaries from $400 to $500 per month. Steven Rich and Alice Crites contributed to this report. All Church funds exist for no other reason than to support the Church’s divinely appointed mission.”. Neither Willes nor an official from Beneficial Life responded to messages seeking comment. Under the headline “The Mormon Church Amassed $100 Billion. He also provided information on Ensign’s bank accounts and a list of employees whom officials should contact. A Taubman spokeswoman declined to comment. Only four senior Ensign executives are permitted to see the company’s full financial statements, according to the complaint, and investment staff members may access information only on the Ensign assets relating to their own area of work. In 1997, the investment division of the LDS Church was spun off into a separate legal entity named after a hill, Ensign Peak, that overlooks Salt Lake City. Despite the bailout, Beneficial Life announced it would terminate 150 of its 214 Utah workers and stop writing new insurance policies. The problem may be that our pews have grown too soft. While accumulating this wealth, Ensign has not directly funded any religious, educational or charitable activities in 22 years, the complaint said. Ensign is registered with authorities as a supporting organization and integrated auxiliary of the Mormon Church. Nielsen’s complaint comes as many Mormons across the United States are engaged in discussions with their bishops, traditionally held in December, to “settle” their dues to the church. Introducing Ensign Partners, an Arizona based company focused on helping connect people in our community to professionals in the areas of financial, insurance, tax, legal, mortgage and realty. According to The Washington Post, which obtained a copy of the complaint lodged with the IRS, the funds were held in accounts dedicated to charitable causes, and the church's investment division, Ensign Peak Advisors, was listed as a nonprofit organization. While declining to discuss the extent of their holdings, church leaders have sought to explain the practice of continuing to collect tithes while accumulating financial reserves. Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the number of Catholics in the U.S., a population of 75 million in 2010, not 170 million. “We simply think that information belongs to those who made the contribution, and not to the world,” said Hinckley, who died in 2008. In 1997, the investment division of the LDS Church was spun off into a separate legal entity named after Ensign Peak… The Mormon Church’s wealth and investment acumen has been widely reported. But those assets, you have to know this, are not money-producing. During my fundraising, we met with several Utah based investment groups like Intermountain Healthcare, University of Utah, Deseret Mutual, and the big kahuna of them all, Ensign Peak Advisors which is the super secretive investment … Ensign employees “are trained to be especially sensitive” about data flowing outside the corporation, the complaint states. Nielsen told Ensign in a resignation letter dated Aug. 29 that his employment had become unworkable after his wife and children left the Mormon Church and asked him to follow them, according to a copy of the letter provided by Lars Nielsen. Nonprofit organizations, including religious groups, are exempted in the United States from paying taxes on their income. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. The complaint was filed by David A. Nielsen, a 41-year-old Mormon who worked until September as a senior portfolio manager at the church’s investment division, a company named Ensign Peak Advisors that is based near the church’s headquarters. Part of the investments were with Fisher Investments, but some money was pulled after controversial comments from founder Kenneth Fi… The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. The returns, which are publicly available, show that in some recent years, the company has reported losses of millions of dollars — a period in which, according to the complaint, a fuller accounting of its operations would have shown billions of dollars in profits. “Having seen tens of billions in contributions and scores more in investment returns come in, and having seen nothing except two unlawful distributions to for-profit concerns go out, he was dejected beyond words, and so was I,” Lars Nielsen wrote. He suggests church leaders favor continuing to collect tithes to avoid “losing control over their members’ behavior” by releasing them from their financial obligations. According to Nielsen, $2 billion from Ensign has been used over the past decade to bail out a church-run insurance company and a shopping mall in Salt Lake City that was a joint venture between the church and a major real estate company. David Nielsen offered to continue working until Oct. 4. It also accuses church leaders of using the tax-exempt donations to prop up a pair of businesses. Ensign Peak Advisors: an investment fund of the Mormon Church. “But that is usually not best for a story.”, In remarks last year, a high-ranking cleric in the church, Bishop Gérald Caussé, said it “pays taxes on any income it derives from revenue-producing activities that are regularly carried on and are not substantially related to its tax-exempt purposes.”. Church representatives spoke of the principles of preparation and self-reliance that they encourage in their members and which are practiced by the organization. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc has 20 total employees across all of its locations and … Nielsen’s complaint further alleges that between 2009 and 2014, Ensign pumped $1.4 billion in several installments into the City Creek Center, a shopping mall in downtown Salt Lake City featuring a retractable roof. Amid complaints from members about the church venturing into retail, church leaders have repeatedly made assurances over several years that no money from tithes would be spent on developing the mall, a joint venture with the Taubman real estate group. Their last reported 13F filing for Q2 2020 included $36,794,780,000 in managed 13F securities and a top 10 holdings concentration of 24.6%. The story has also been updated to include additional statements from the church about its charitable giving. Ensign’s human resources director told him in a reply that managers had decided it would be best to terminate his employment Sept. 3. “I know that sometimes newspapers use anonymous sources,” he said. In June 2012, Nielsen founded his … Leaders have consistently tried to downplay speculation about the extent of the church’s wealth. Nielsen Founded His Own Tech Startip in Silicon Valley in 2012. In addition to criticizing the scale of wealth accumulated by the church, Nielsen’s complaint accuses church leaders of acting improperly on the rare occasions that funds have been paid out from the investment division. It Was the Best-Kept Secret in the Investment World, Church responds to allegations made by former employee in IRS complaint, Boyd and Chapman: The Washington Post says the Church of Jesus Christ has billions. Sign up for the His estimate of $7 billion in annual revenue points to a relatively high rate of contributions from the 15 million members. In a blog post for the Mormon website By Common Consent, Brunson explained that Ensign Peak Advisors falls under a murky category for the IRS. The Wall Street Journal on Saturday published a story on Ensign Peak Advisors, the investment arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 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