Seven Chinese companies blacklisted by the US for engaging in horrific forced labor practices saw a multi-million dollar boost in investments from New York City’s pension funds during ex-City Comptroller Brad Lander’s tenure, The Post has learned.
Lander — who is running in the Democratic primary to unseat Rep. Dan Goldman — oversaw increasing the city’s investments in the companies even after they were sanctioned under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, signed by then-President Joe Biden in 2021.
The city’s investment in the firms on the UFLPA list skyrocketed from $4.8 million in 2022, when Lander took office, to $11.1 million by the end of his term in 2025, public records show.
The UFLPA bans imports from businesses whose goods are believed to have been made using the forced labor of Uyghurs and other oppressed ethnic minorities in China’s western Xinjiang region.
While investments aren’t banned, Lander has claimed his role as comptroller — managing about $290 billion in assets for five public pension funds — centered around ethics.
He said in a recent interview with the New York Editorial Board that he worked to support “workers’ rights at many of the companies we invested in.”
It’s not the first time Lander has come under fire for the city pensions fiscal moves.
His office’s decision to end investments in all Israel bonds in 2023 sparked fierce blowback from the Jewish community.
The ex-comptroller was also scrutinized earlier this year, when it was revealed his office expanded pension investments in Palantir Technologies – a data analytics company used by ICE immigration enforcement – despite his outspoken opposition to the group, amNewYork first reported.
“Our work wasn’t just about spreadsheets and budgets. It was about ensuring that every city dollar was used wisely and ethically to serve the 8.4 million New Yorkers who rely on our city government every day,” Lander said in a video on the comptroller’s office’s YouTube account in December 2025, shortly before his term ended.
In multiple cases, Lander’s team increased the city’s number of company shares in the same year or shortly after they were added to the UFLPA list, which is managed by the US Department of Homeland Security.
For instance, the comptroller’s office purchased stock in Cofco Sugar Holding, a Chinese sugar manufacturer, the same year it was added to the list in December 2023.
Another company, large appliance manufacturer Changhong Meiling, was put on the list in 2022 after reports that police had escorted 90 people from Xinjiang to work there.
That didn’t deter the comptroller’s office from investing $7.4 million in pension funds in the company in 2024. That investment now stands at about half a million dollars in shares.
Lander’s team in 2023 also bought another 96,300 shares in Huafu Fashion — a textile manufacturer on the UFLPA for allegedly using forced labor — on top of the 103,400 shares the city held when he took office.
As of June 2025, the city pension funds held close to 200,000 shares of the company’s stock, totaling about $127,000.
The other companies included Ninestar Corp, Zijn Mining, and Xingjian Zhongtai Chemical, and Hoshine Silicone Industry, according to a review of records by The Post.
“As comptroller, Brad had a fiduciary responsibility to New York City retirees, such that he was able to make broad policies on investments but couldn’t choose individual companies to invest in or divest from,” a spokesperson for the Lander for Congress campaign said.
But the comptroller does have the power to propose divestment and exclusions to the pension’s board.
Lander unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic mayoral nomination last year and is now going up against incumbent Congressman Goldman in the race for New York’s 10th House District.
He’s been endorsed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist who champions workers’ rights.
Current City Comptroller Mark Levine did not immediately respond to The Post’s inquiry about whether he has plans to divest from the sanctioned companies.
