ICGN Statement of Principles on Institutional Shareholder Responsibilities 2007
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This code was produced by: ICGN International Corporate Governance Network
This document is a revised version of the Statement of Principles of Institutional Shareholder Responsibilities. The new version takes account of the many comments received from members during the consultation process and was formally approved at the annual meeting in July. The ICGN is particularly grateful to those who replied to the consultation and have sought to take all comments into account to produce a document that the Committee on Shareholder Responsibilities believes should command a real consensus.
The changes since last year involve a re-ordering and strengthening of the section on internal governance to highlight the overarching responsibility of institutional investors to their end beneficiaries. We have also added an annex, which gives additional detail, particularly with regard to the management of conflicts of interest. The annex also includes a bibliography as well as some examples of initiatives at both international and national levels to further responsible behaviour by institutions.
Nowadays there is fierce international debate about the role of investors, particularly hedge funds and private equity in the affairs of corporations. The Committee believes the paper makes an important contribution to this debate because it lays out key principles with regard to investor responsibility. For example it calls for considered voting and public disclosure of voting policy and says shareholder intervention should aim for long-term value creation. It also contains an explicit link to the ICGN Securities Lending Code of Best Practice. The ICGN would welcome further recommendations for the appendix and the bibliography. Comments and recommendations can be sent to Anne Simpson at execdirector@icgn.org
The changes since last year involve a re-ordering and strengthening of the section on internal governance to highlight the overarching responsibility of institutional investors to their end beneficiaries. We have also added an annex, which gives additional detail, particularly with regard to the management of conflicts of interest. The annex also includes a bibliography as well as some examples of initiatives at both international and national levels to further responsible behaviour by institutions.
Nowadays there is fierce international debate about the role of investors, particularly hedge funds and private equity in the affairs of corporations. The Committee believes the paper makes an important contribution to this debate because it lays out key principles with regard to investor responsibility. For example it calls for considered voting and public disclosure of voting policy and says shareholder intervention should aim for long-term value creation. It also contains an explicit link to the ICGN Securities Lending Code of Best Practice. The ICGN would welcome further recommendations for the appendix and the bibliography. Comments and recommendations can be sent to Anne Simpson at execdirector@icgn.org
