The California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), the second largest public pension fund in the United States, has endorsed the Stewardship Code for institutional investors, becoming the first US-based fund to back the policy, which it called a “standard for …
Read MoreThe prospect of new regulation at the ownership end of corporate governance mechanisms in Europe is beginning to take shape.
The new Member of the European Commission responsible for Internal Market and Services, Michel Barnier, has recently been making increasingly …
Read MoreThe UK’s Institutional Shareholder Committee (ISC) has issued as pre-emptive strike against potential legislation from the Walker Review with the publication of a voluntary code of conduct for its members. The “Code on the Responsibilities of Institutional Investors” outlines seven …
Read MoreBall Corp, an Indiana-incorporated company, has faced shareholder proposals in four of the past five years (2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009) to declassify its board. In each year, despite board opposition, the proposal received majority support from shareholders voting for …
Read MoreOne of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, Norway’s $325 billion oil fund, has written to Volskwagen AG expressing its “deep concern” about the Porsche merger saying the deal favors the Porsche and Piech families which together own 51 percent …
Read MoreLeading UK pension investors Hermes and Universities Superannuation Scheme have asked the Dutch Enterprise Chamber to intervene in the Canon-Océ takeover deal. The funds, which collectively own 5.1% of the company have called for an investigation into the negotiations between …
Read MoreNearly 180 shareholder proposals will come to a vote at 102 U.S. companies holding shareholder meetings between May 1 and May 15. Of these proposals, 35% relate to social and environmental issues (including, among others, climate change, sustainability, and political …
Read MoreEuro investor activism at US firms continues
International pension funds appear ready to continue to pressure U.S. companies to appoint independent board chairs, a leadership structure now commonly adopted by European boards but still relatively rare in the United States. …
Read MoreFrench SICAV Proxy Active Investors is crying foul over the high handed dismissal of its proposal to separate the chair and CEO roles at Société Générale.
On April 7th 2010, PhiTrust, the managers of Proxy Active, and a group of …
Read More“Where were the shareholders?” has not been far from the lips of global regulators, media and the general public over the past two years. While some funds have jibbed at the idea of become more closely involved in the stewardship …
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