Broadridge Issues Report on Implementing New EC Shareholder Rights Directive

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has published a new report on implementing the revised Shareholder Rights Directive across European member states. The report explains the opportunity to advance corporate governance and the core areas of change for firms involved in the proxy voting lifecycle, while highlighting the need for harmonization across national jurisdictions. The report, Shareholder Rights Directive: Everything You Need to Know, calls for a proactive industry response to shape common guidelines and implementation standards around the Directive, is set to come into force through national laws by September 3, 2020. It focuses on three key themes: shareholder identification, vote confirmation, and agenda distribution/voting by intermediaries. The revised Shareholder Rights Directive is an amended version of the original 2007 legislation. The new measures will require financial institutions and intermediaries throughout the proxy voting lifecycle, including custodians and institutional investors, to use a new mechanism to exchange shareholder information in every European Union (EU)/European Economic Area (EEA) market. These institutions will also be required to adhere to significantly more stringent processing deadlines and mandatory processes such as shareholder identification.