The SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee has kicked off its first meeting with an ambitious and far-reaching agenda.Sets Ambitious Agenda. At its inaugural meeting July 27, the committee, which includes institutional governance heavyweights Hye-Won Choi (TIAA-CREF), Mark Anson (Nuveen Investments), Abe Friedman (Barclays Global Investors), Dennis Johnson (Shamrock Activist Fund) and Damon Silvers (AFL-CIO), as well […]
Read MoreNorthern Rock’s former shareholders have lost their bid for a judicial review of the nationalisation compensation scheme but have vowed to press their claims in the the House of Lords and, potentially, the European Court of Human Rights. The House of Lords appeal could be heard in summer 2010 but an appeal to the European Court could take […]
Read MoreA research study by Manifest’s US partners, PROXYGovernance Inc(PGI), reveals some interesting trends about US board governance. PGI’s review of Russell 3000 companies holding their 2009 annual meeting prior to July 1 reveals that boards of financial services firms have added fewer new directors since the sub-prime credit crisis began than boards in any other major sector. […]
Read MoreThe Investors Working Group, a bi-partisan panel of experts created in February 2009 by the Council of Institutional Investors and the CFA Institute Centre for Financial Market Integrity, has released its recommendations for reform and modernisation of the US financial markets. According to the report, strengthening existing regulatory agencies, closing gaps in the regulatory structure, […]
Read MoreManifest’s campaign to ensure shareholders at Irish companies have the opportunity to cast an advisory vote on the remuneration report gathered momentum over the weekend, with a full page article in the Irish edition of The Sunday Times. Last month Manifest filed shareholder resolutions at five Irish companies seeking an advisory say-on-pay vote. The Sunday […]
Read MoreThe quest for a single set of global governance standards is misguided and investors should stop using global governance standards based on US policy approaches. That’s the conclusion of Lucian Bebchuk and Assaf Hamdani in their latest paper: “The Elusive Quest for Global Governance Standards”. The key issue at the heart of what many will see […]
Read MoreThe dominance of the Big 4 audit firms continues to be a cause for concern according to a report by the UK’s reporting and governance watchdog, the Financial Reporting Council. The FRC has published the third of its Progress Reports outlining the progress of the 15 recommendations made by the Market Participants Group (MPG) in October 2007 […]
Read MoreRoyal Dutch Shell today suffered one of the UK’s all time biggest ever shareholder revolts with a 57.1% vote Against the remuneration report vote. Since the introduction of the Directors Remuneration Report Regulations in 2002 only two other FTSE100 companies have lost their say on pay vote: RBS in 2009 with 80.14% and GlaxoSmithKline in 2003 with 38% Against, […]
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