Bloomberg Industry quoted Agnes Vinblad, Director of Environment and Sustainable Development at USCIB, in an article on April 22, titled “Citi, eBay Ride Corporate Wave Citing EU Climate Reporting Risks.” Vinblad talks about an overarching concern companies have about the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)—namely, costly compliance through resource-intensive corporate sustainability reports and the hiring of external consultants.
Read full article here.
Declan Daly, Chief Operating and Financial Officer at USCIB, attended the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) World Chambers Federation (WCF) World ATA Carnet (WATAC) meeting, hosted by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) in Berlin.
Key discussions focused on plans for the e-ATA Carnet and the global transition strategy from paper-based to fully digital solutions. Other topics mentioned were the ATA Carnet member elections and composition, an update to the ATA Contingency plan, the impact of war and sanctions on the guaranteed chain, and the ATA Global Promotion.
“It’s an exciting time for the ATA Carnet community as USCIB embraces innovation and works with global partners to shape the future,” said Daly.
USCIB convened a roundtable discussion for member companies with OECD Secretary General Mathias Cormann on April 23 during Bank Week in Washington DC. The discussion focused on the OECD’s role in advancing market-based principles that level the playing field and provide a more competitive environment for US companies.
Opening remarks were made by Cormann; Rick Johnston, Managing Director of Global Government Affairs at Citi, Chair of Business at OECD (BIAC), Vice Chair of USCIB, and Chair of the USCIB Trade and Investment Committee; and Whitney Young Baird, USCIB President and CEO. The conversation underscored the longstanding role of the OECD in championing the global norms that bolster private enterprise.
Thanks to USCIB member BCG for hosting the meeting at their DC office.
USCIB staff met with Gilbert Houngbo, Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and his team in Washington, DC this week. The USCIB group included Whitney Young Baird, President and CEO, Kristen Edgreen Kaufman, SVP of Global Impact Initiatives, Ewa Staworzynska, Director of Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs, and Tom Mackall, Senior Counsel and ILO Governing Body Member.
The ILO is unique among multilateral organizations for its tripartite structure, which brings together governments, employers, and workers at the same table. The discussion between the two organizations emphasized the importance of including the private sector and business voice in shaping labor and social policies.
USCIB serves as the US employer representative to the ILO, which is a core part of USCIB’s mandate to represent US business in global policy forums.
“The ILO’s constituents set global labor standards that directly impact US business interests,” said Kaufman. “The tripartite structure, including governments, employers, and workers, provides a unique platform for the US to negotiate labor standards and helps US businesses maintain a competitive edge in international markets.”
In this week’s Bloomberg Tax article titled “Critics Offer Ways to Revamp IRS Cloud-Income Sourcing Rules,” USCIB, along with other business groups and tax practitioners, shared their suggestions for alternative approaches if the IRS decides to roll back or significantly revise its proposed rules on sourcing cloud-transaction income.
Rick Minor, SVP and International Tax Counsel for USCIB, commented that the current regulations “appear to reward holding intellectual property offshore.” The article was a follow up to the commentary letter on the proposed cloud regs that USCIB filed this month with the IRS.
Read the full article here (paywall enforced).
New York, NY, April 22, 2025—The US Council for International Business (USCIB) welcomes Roblox as the newest member of the organization. USCIB offers members access to global policymakers and regulatory bodies, advocating for US business interests on a wide range of issues. Roblox’s innovative spirit and expertise in creating and managing a vast virtual universe of immersive experiences, will contribute to USCIB’s mission to advance the voice of US business at home and around the world.
Roblox, headquartered in San Mateo, California, is a leading global platform for shared digital experiences, enabling millions of users to imagine, create, and play together in immersive 3D worlds. Roblox joins USCIB for our work in digital policy and our commitment to shaping the future of the digital economy.
USCIB’s digital policy work focuses on several key areas, including AI, cross-border data flows, cybersecurity, internet governance, and privacy and data governance. By joining USCIB, Roblox will gain access to a network of industry leaders and policymakers, enabling them to stay at the forefront of digital policy developments and advocate for a regulatory environment that supports innovation and growth.
“We are excited to welcome Roblox to USCIB, especially as we navigate the complexities of digital policy in an ever-changing global regulatory landscape,” said Whitney Baird, President and CEO of USCIB. “USCIB’s deep expertise and access to digital policy decisionmakers will help support Roblox’s advocacy goals as we work together to advance US leadership on the world stage and foster a thriving digital economy.”
“Roblox looks forward to joining USCIB to gain insights from its members and help advance digital policy priorities,” said Nicky Jackson Colaco, Head of Global Public Policy at Roblox. “We hope Roblox’s unique perspective and knowledge of issues such as kids online safety, AI creation and the developer economy provide USCIB’s network with additional areas of expertise and opportunities for collaboration.”
About USCIB
The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) powers the success of US business across the globe. Our members include US-based companies and professional services firms from every sector of the economy, with operations in every region of the world. As the US affiliate of leading international business organizations including Business at OECD (BIAC), The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), and The International Organization of Employers (IOE), USCIB advances the US business perspective to policymakers and regulatory authorities worldwide and works to facilitate commerce, support sustainable development, and build trust in multilateral systems. USCIB is also the national guaranteeing and issuing association for ATA Carnets, a unified international customs document that allows for the temporary import and export of various types of goods into a foreign country without paying duties or taxes. Learn more at www.uscib.org.
Jason File, Director of Legal Affairs and General Counsel at USCIB, participated in the Fifth Session of the International Investment Contract Working Group. The Session was co-organized by the ICC Institute of World Business Law (ICC Institute) and the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) in Paris from April 1 to April 3.
File added an investor’s perspective to the Working Group’s discussions of draft model clauses for international investment contracts, contributing to the Group’s goal of producing a balanced model contractual framework for Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs). File highlighted the importance of investor protections in managing project risk and ensuring that projects can come to fruition in ways that efficiently contribute to sustainable development.
The ICC Institute and UNIDROIT are leading this joint initiative on International Investment Contract model clauses.
“By leveraging their unique institutional strengths, these organizations aim to generate international investment contract model clauses that balance the interests of host states in preserving legislative and regulatory flexibility in public policy areas, with the interests of foreign investors, who require assurances that their investments will be treated fairly and predictably in order to initiate and complete large scale projects,” said File.
At a time when investor protections may be jeopardized by proposed investment treaty reforms, international investment contracts are seen as a key mechanism to manage risk and ensure that essential public infrastructure works in areas like housing, clean energy, transportation, and water, among others, can be realized safely and affordably.
This week marked the commencement of in-person intersessional negotiations for the UN Treaty on Business and Human Rights (BHR). These negotiations, following last year’s UN resolution, have tripled in the amount of time, with a total of 15 days per year being spent on deliberating this legally binding instrument. USCIB and the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) are the only business representatives participating in these discussions.
USCIB member Lavanga Wijekoon, Shareholder at Littler Mendelson, and Ewa Staworzynska, Director of Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs at USCIB, represented USCIB at these negotiations. Member States deliberated several chapters of the Treaty, focusing on the rights of victims, protection of victims, and access to remedy.
As one of only two business organizations in attendance, USCIB raised serious concerns about the draft Treaty, in line with its position paper from December. According to USCIB, the draft continues to deviate from the well-established framework of the UN Guiding Principles on BHR, posing significant risks to business and economic growth.
The intersessional negotiations will continue throughout the summer, leading up to the annual formal negotiations in October.
The 2025 Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Second Consultation and Multistakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) meeting kicked off in Geneva this week. The Consultation brought together representatives from business, governments, civil society, and the technical community to select workshops, build main sessions, and coordinate the IGF’s 20th Anniversary Meeting. Cheryl Miller, Vice President for Digital Policy at USCIB, attended these meetings.
The group explored main session themes focused on AI governance, universal access and digital rights, and IGF’s value to the multistakeholder community.
The MAG received several presentations from the Office of Digital and Emerging Technologies (ODET), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and other international organizations engaged in digital policy issues, as well as an update from the IGF Leadership Committee. The group considered the impact of the IGF on the Global Digital Compact and the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) + 20 Review, using these linkages to build a robust program for the global Internet community.
Last week in Paris, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) convened its Working Party on Employment and the Committee on Employment, Labor and Social Affairs (ELSAC). The Business at OECD (BIAC) delegation was co-led by Ewa Staworzynska, Director of Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs at USCIB and Kazumi Sakashita of Keidanren, both of whom serve as vice chairs of BIAC’s Employment, Labor and Social Affairs Committee.
USCIB also represented members on issues related to AI and employment.
Discussions at the OECD ELSAC meeting centered around the forthcoming Employment Outlook report, the OECD’s annual flagship research publication on employment policies. This year’s report focuses on demographic shifts in the labor market.