Category: Corporate Governance
SEC adopts final rules on compensation clawbacks in the event of financial restatements—“Big R” and “little r”
You might remember back to 2015 when the SEC initially proposed rules to implement Section 954 of Dodd-Frank, the clawback provision. The SEC did not then consider adoption of the proposal in the ordinary course, instead relegating it to the long-term agenda, where it was never heard from again. Until, that is, the topic found a spot on the SEC’s short-term agenda in 2021 (see this PubCo post) with a target date for a re-proposal of April 2022. Instead of a re-proposal, however, a year ago, the SEC simply posted a notice announcing that it was re-opening the comment period and posing a number of questions for public comment. (See this PubCo post.) One possible change suggested by the SEC’s questions was a potential expansion of the concept of “restatement” to include not only “reissuance,” or “Big R,” restatements (which involve a material error and an 8-K), but also “revision” or “little r” restatements. Then, in June of this year, DERA issued a new staff memorandum addressing in part the restatement question, which led the SEC to once again re-open the comment period. Finally, the SEC has concluded that, after more than seven years, the proposal has marinated long enough. Time to serve it up. Accordingly, at an open meeting yesterday, the SEC adopted, by a vote of—surprise!—three to two, new rules that direct the national securities exchanges to establish listing standards requiring listed issuers to adopt and comply with a clawback policy and to provide disclosure about the policy and its implementation. The clawback policy must provide that, in the event the listed issuer is required to prepare an accounting restatement—including a “little r” restatement—the issuer must recover the incentive-based compensation that was erroneously paid to its current or former executive officers based on the misstated financial reporting measure. Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda dissented, contending that, among other problems, the rule was too broad and too prescriptive. According to SEC Chair Gary Gensler, the key word here is “erroneously,” that is, the rule requires recovery of compensation to which the officers were never entitled in the first place. In his statement at the meeting, Gensler indicated that he believes “that these rules will strengthen the transparency and quality of corporate financial statements, investor confidence in those statements, and the accountability of corporate executives to investors….Through today’s action and working with the exchanges, we have the opportunity to fulfill Dodd-Frank’s mandate and Congress’s intention to prevent executives from keeping compensation received based on misstated financials.”
Final climate rules are months away, reports Bloomberg
Here’s a big scoop from Bloomberg: the “SEC is months away from finalizing expansive new climate disclosure requirements as the agency juggles investor demands for more transparency, tech glitches and a tough Republican legal threat.” Are you really surprised though? That was a substantial, complex undertaking that elicited thousands of comments and a lot of pressure from opponents and proponents. Then, in July, came another challenge, as SCOTUS handed down West Virginia v EPA, which, although not directly addressing the SEC’s climate proposal, sure seemed to put a bull’s eye on it. (See this PubCo post.) Not to mention the SEC’s technical glitch, which led to a reopening of the comment period for a couple of weeks until November 1. (See this PubCo post.) That alone would have been enough to smoke the October target date set in the most recent SEC agenda. (See this PubCo post.) But what is real timeframe? Well, who knows. According to Bloomberg, SEC Chair Gary “Gensler has declined to give a timeline for finishing the climate regulations in recent public appearances, repeatedly pointing to thousands of comments that still need to be reviewed.” Bloomberg also reports that SEC “officials in private conversations have given no indication they’ll finish the rules this year, according to several people in contact with the agency.”
Are auditors falling down on the job of detecting fraud?
Paul Munter, the SEC’s Acting Chief Accountant, seems to think so. In this Statement, Munter expresses his concern that, in conducting audits, auditors are not adequately making use of the “fraud lens”—a focus on the consideration of fraud in the audit—in fulfilling their gatekeeper role. That is, auditors may not be adequately responding to fraud risks and red flags or otherwise exercising “professional skepticism.” It is critical, he said, that auditors evaluate whether the audit has surfaced information that may be indicative of fraud and “how fraud could be perpetrated or concealed by management.” Are auditors exhibiting a type of bias, focusing risk assessments on risks of error and essentially overlooking or minimizing risks of fraud? In light of Munter’s statement, companies could well find that their auditors may be doubling down on their application of professional skepticism. What’s more, some of Munter’s recommendations may prove useful for companies in establishing their own ethics environments and conducting their own fraud risk assessments.
Is there an “ESG backlash” among CFOs?
While a recent survey of CEOs (discussed in this PubCo post yesterday) showed increasingly favorable reactions to ESG and its potential impact—transforming ESG “from a nice-to-have to integral to long-term financial success”— what about CFOs? According to this survey of CFOs from CNBC, they’re just not all that into it. Granted, this survey of CFOs was minuscule compared to the KPMG survey of CEOs—actually, compared to any survey. But the results were strikingly different. CNBC labeled it an “ESG backlash.”
How do CEOs view ESG?
KPMG has recently posted its 2022 CEO Outlook. With inflation raging and a possible recession looming, KPMG found that CEOs were “ready and prepared to weather current geopolitical and economic challenges while still anticipating long-term global growth.” According to the survey, confidence in economic growth over the next three years has risen to 71%. Of particular interest were the survey results related to ESG. According to KPMG, “ESG has gone from a nice-to-have to integral to long-term financial success.” But will a potential recession curtail their enthusiasm?
Corp Fin issues new Section 16 and Section 13 CDIs related to ETFs
Corp Fin has issued a few new CDIs—two relating to Section 16 and one relating to beneficial ownership under Rule 13d-3. The new CDIs address issues in connection with exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, and the use of “informational barriers.”
SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee discusses human capital and beneficial ownership
On Wednesday, the SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee held a jam-packed meeting to discuss, among other matters, human capital disclosure and the SEC’s proposal on Schedule 13D beneficial ownership. Wait, didn’t this Committee just have a meeting in June about human capital disclosure, part of the program about non-traditional financial information? (See this PubCo post.) Yes, but, as the moderator suggested, Wednesday’s program was really a “Part II” of that prior meeting, expanding the discussion from accounting standards for human capital disclosure to now consider other labor-related performance data metrics that may be appropriate for disclosure. The Committee also considered whether to make recommendations in support of the SEC’s proposals regarding cybersecurity disclosure and climate disclosure.
Corp Fin speaks at “SEC Speaks”
At last week’s PLI program, SEC Speaks, Corp Fin Director Renee Jones and crew discussed a number of topics, among them disclosure of emerging risks, recent rulemakings, staff focus on Part III disclosures, shareholder proposals and MD&A disclosures. But there’s no denying that the most entertaining moments came from the caustic side commentary provided by former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins, whose perspective on current trends is, hmmm, distinctly at odds with the zeitgeist currently prevailing at the SEC.
Diversity for foreign private issuers
Countries outside the U.S. have sometimes been trendsetters when it comes to board diversity. For example, according to the California’s board gender diversity bill, SB 826, signed into law in 2018, “in 2003, Norway was the first country to legislate a mandatory 40 percent quota for female representation on corporate boards.” Under Nasdaq’s board diversity rules (see this PubCo post), board diversity encompasses more than gender diversity—it also includes persons who self-identify as underrepresented minorities or LGBTQ+. Nasdaq’s new diversity rules also apply to foreign private issuers. What does “board diversity” mean for foreign private issuers and non-US companies considering US IPOs? Does it focus solely on women or does it have a broader scope? Who are “underrepresented individuals in home country jurisdiction”? These questions and more are addressed in this fascinating piece, Board Diversity for Foreign Private Issuers: Does Board Diversity Mean the Same Thing Worldwide?, from Cooley’s Singapore office, posted on the Cooley CapitalXchange blog.
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