Corporate boards hire white men at fastest rate in years amid Trump's DEI purge

Driving the news: Nearly 55% of the more than 400 new directors appointed to the boards of S&P 500 companies through Sept. 24 of this year were white men, ISS-Corporate found.

• Women made up about a third of new board seats, down from a peak of 44% in 2022.
• Directors of color made up 20% of board hires, down from 44% in 2021.

Catch up quick: In February, Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a memo directing the DOJ Civil Rights division "to investigate, eliminate and penalize illegal DEI and DEIA preferences, mandates, policies, programs and activities in the private sector."

• By March 1, the division should report "the most egregious and discriminatory DEI" practitioners, according to the memo.

• That followed an executive order Trump signed the day after taking office that directed agencies to make lists of companies to target.

Zoom out: In the first eight months following Trump's second term, companies like Walt Disney, Meta and Target have quickly recast or outright killed their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies to avoid the wrath of the White House.

Reality check: In 2020, businesses with more diverse boards outperformed their peers, according to data provided to Axios by BoardReady, a nonprofit.