stewardship Archives

The People’s Trust: Shareholders’ Committee announced

The People’s Trust, an investment trust due to be launched on the London Stock Exchange and Social Stock Exchange next month, has announced the first six members of its independent shareholders’ committee and its chair, Catherine Howarth, chief executive …

Guidance launched to help UK boards take stakeholders into account

ICSA: The Governance Institute and The Investment Association (IA) have launched guidance to help UK company boards ensure they understand and weigh up the interests of their stakeholders when making strategic decisions.

This follows the recent publication of the government’s …

UK advisory firms commit to informing trustees about ESG guidance

The Association of Member-Nominated Trustees (AMNT) and the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF) have achieved a commitment by 12 leading investment consultants that they will make clients aware of the guidance from The Pensions Regulator that pension funds …

Vanguard writes to global companies specifying engagement priorities

Global investment firm Vanguard has written an open letter to the directors of public companies worldwide specifying its priorities that it will engage with firms about as part of its stewardship programme.

The letter, from its chairman and chief executive …

Swiss companies see increased investor dissent

Investors in leading Swiss companies are increasingly prepared to vote against management, particularly over executive pay, according to research by the Ethos Foundation.

Ethos, a pension fund-led responsible investment foundation shows that amongst the 200 companies comprised in the …

Vanguard: Walden Asset Management ESG engagement success

Sustainable investment specialist, Walden Asset Management, has withdrawn a resolution due to be voted on at a Vanguard mutual fund meeting in November. The resolution had challenged the proxy voting records on shareholder resolutions addressing significant social and environmental

Deforestation: shareholders get response to resolutions

Investors are increasingly pushing some of the world’s biggest companies to commit to reducing their impact on the global forests, according to an analysis of shareholder resolutions put forward at US AGMs. The report was published by the Global Canopy …

Financial Services Council stewardship code

FSC introduces Australia’s asset stewardship code

Australia’s Financial Services Council (FSC) which represents the country’s fund management and pensions industry has launched an Internal Governance and Asset Stewardship Standard for investment managers and asset owners.

This is the first stewardship code introduced in Australia and the …

Responsible investors press for M&S to pay living wage to staff

A group of institutional investors with over £100 billion assets under management, coordinated by responsible investment pressure group, ShareAction, has requested that Marks & Spencer accredits as a Living Wage employer because they believe there will be significant benefits for

EU’s Sustainable Finance Group produces early recommendations

The EU’s High-Level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance, established by the European Commission, has published its interim report and made early recommendations to move Europe towards a low carbon, more resource-efficient and sustainable economy.

The Commission said that …