Category: Corporate Governance
BlackRock sets its priorities for board engagement
by Cydney Posner Asset management firm BlackRock (reportedly the largest, with $5.1 trillion under management) has identified its “Investment Stewardship” priorities for 2017-2018, intended to help companies prepare for engaging with BlackRock. Among the hot topics are governance (including board composition and diversity), corporate strategy for long-term value creation in […]
SEC committee discusses multi-class common with unequal voting rights
by Cydney Posner An interesting topic of discussion at a meeting last week of the SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee was “unequal voting rights of common stock” — the trend over the last decade (plus) for a small number of IPO companies, particularly tech companies, to offer low-vote or, more recently, no-vote […]
State Street Global Advisors talks the talk on board gender diversity, but will it walk the walk?
by Cydney Posner Happy International Women’s Day! In this press release, State Street Global Advisors, which manages $2.47 trillion in assets, announced, on the eve of International Women’s Day, that it is “calling on the more than 3,500 companies [in which] State Street invests on behalf of clients, representing more […]
SEC continues to grant no-action relief in connection with proxy access fix-it proposals
by Cydney Posner The SEC has posted a number of additional Corp Fin responses to requests for no-action, as well as to requests for reconsideration of previous denials of relief, regarding shareholder proposals to amend proxy access bylaws, so-called “fix-it” proposals. In all cases, the companies argued that they should […]
Another theory on Corp Fin’s position on proxy access fix-it proposals
by Cydney Posner Corp Fin has refined its position with regard to exclusion of proposals to amend existing proxy access bylaws. However, the basis for the staff’s determination to grant or refuse no-action relief in that context remains a conundrum.
For the avoidance of doubt, Acting Corp Fin Director confirms conflict minerals and pay-ratio disclosure rules still in effect
Cydney Posner As reported by the WSJ, at the SEC Speaks conference today, to avoid any doubt on the matter, Acting Corp Fin Director Shelley Parratt reminded companies that, notwithstanding the two requests for public comment issued by Acting SEC Chair Michael Piwowar and all of the Executive Orders aimed […]
Corp Fin refines its position on proxy access fix-it proposals (updated)
by Cydney Posner Corp Fin has refined its position with regard to exclusion of proposals to amend existing proxy access bylaws. As you may recall, the line drawn so far by Corp Fin has been that, where the shareholder proposal related to initial adoption of proxy access, Corp Fin has continued to […]
Recent trends in proxy statements
by Cydney Posner It just isn’t proxy season without some kind of account of the latest trends in proxy statements, so here’s one from CFO.com.
Shareholder proposals regarding lead director tenure: a harbinger of things to come? (Updated)
by Cydney Posner The topic of director tenure has increasingly become the focus of both academics and investors. Some argue that long-term directors contribute deep knowledge of the company and provide experience, historical memory and continuity to the board — along with the gravitas sometimes necessary to challenge management. Others […]
Proposed changes in the Financial CHOICE Act 2.0
by Cydney Posner A just-released memo (subscription required) from Jeb Hensarling, Chair of the House Financial Services Committee, to the Committee’s Leadership Team outlines the proposed changes from the original Financial CHOICE Act, introduced last year (see this PubCo post), to be included in the Financial CHOICE Act 2.0. Of […]
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