Standards & Guidance
ASX urged to tighten up on investor rights wavers
The Australian Council
of Super Investors (ACSI) has expressed concern about the
Australian Stock Exchange’s (ASX’s) granting
of waivers from its listing rules, notably in the areas of voting rights,
executive remuneration, related party transactions and pre-emptive rights.
An ACSI-commissioned study has found around 6% of waivers
to raise concern about the erosion of shareholder rights.
For instance, waivers have been granted to infrastructure
vehicles that allow them to bypass the one-share, one-vote listing rule. Under
these waivers, a majority of the fund’s directors are appointed by the external
manager rather than shareholders.
The ACSI is calling for more in-depth and timely
disclosure of the reasons for waivers.
Phillip Spathis, ACSI chief executive, said: “Investors at
the moment usually find out a waiver has been granted a month or so after the
event and the level of explanation provided by the ASX in some cases makes it
hard to work out why the waiver was in shareholders’ interests”.
However, Spathis also noted that ASX disclosure of waivers
is in fact better than that of the London and New York Stock Exchanges.
Links
Australian Council of Super Investors
Australian Stock Exchange
May 2007
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