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Proxy Firm
A proxy firm (also a proxy advisor, proxy adviser, proxy voting agency, vote service provider or shareholder voting research provider) provides services to shareholders (in most cases an institutional investor of some type) to vote their shares at shareholder meetings of, usually, listed companies. The typical services provided include agenda translation, provision of vote management software, voting policy development, company research, and vote administration including vote execution. According to their websites, not all firms provide voting recommendations and those that do may simply execute client voting instructions. The votes executed are called "Proxy Votes" because the shareholder usually does not attend the meeting and instead sends instructions - a proxy appointment - for a third party, usually the chairman of the meeting to vote shares in accordance with the instructions given on the voting card. Industry regulation On July 22, 2020 the SEC voted to effectively begin re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Institutional Investor
An institutional investor is an entity which pools money to purchase securities, real property, and other investment assets or originate loans. Institutional investors include commercial banks, central banks, credit unions, government-linked companies, insurers, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, charities, hedge funds, REITs, investment advisors, endowments, and mutual funds. Operating companies which invest excess capital in these types of assets may also be included in the term. Activist institutional investors may also influence corporate governance by exercising voting rights in their investments. In 2019, the world's top 500 asset managers collectively managed $104.4 trillion in Assets under Management (AuM). Although institutional investors appear to be more sophisticated than retail investors, it remains unclear if professional active investment managers can reliably enhance risk-adjusted returns by an amount that exceeds fees and expenses of investment managemen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Egan-Jones Ratings Company
Egan-Jones Ratings Company is a nationally recognized statistical rating organization (NRSRO) that was founded in 1995 to provide "timely, accurate credit ratings." Egan-Jones rates the credit worthiness of issuers looking to raise capital in private credit markets across a range of asset classes. Typical issuers of rated securities include banks, asset managers, insurance companies, and other financial institutions. Egan-Jones positions itself as unique among NRSROs for being primarily investor-supported, a structure designed to minimize the potential for conflicts of interest in assessing credit quality. Egan-Jones also provides ESG and proxy advisory services. History The firm was granted NRSRO status on December 21, 2007, making it the ninth such organization to be recognized by the SEC. In 2014, Egan-Jones became certified by the EU ESMA as a credit rating agency. In 2021, Egan-Jones became listed on the UK Financial Conduct Authority register as a certified credit r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glass Lewis
Glass, Lewis & Co. (Glass Lewis) is a major American proxy advisory services company. As of spring 2019, Glass Lewis controlled 28% of the proxy advisory market for mutual funds; this makes it the second-largest company in the market behind Institutional Shareholder Services.Shu, Chong, The Proxy Advisory Industry: Influencing and Being Influenced (January 10, 2022). USC Marshall School of Business Research Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3614314 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3614314 The primary service Glass Lewis provides is research and recommendations for shareholder votes by institutional investors, including a digital platform for managing these votes and reporting. A large fraction of those investors follow the recommendations of Glass Lewis in lockstep, giving it outsize importance and impact on governance across the corporate sphere. Founded in 2003, Glass Lewis is headquartered in San Francisco and has offices in New York, Washington DC, Kansas Ci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Institutional Shareholder Services
Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS) is a proxy advisory firm. Hedge funds, mutual funds and similar organizations that own shares of multiple companies pay ISS to advise (and often vote their shares) regarding share holder votes. It is the largest such firm, with over 61 percent of the business. In response to ISS's recommendations to vote against fee-shifting provisions in the event of securities fraud litigation, corporate interests have criticized ISS and suggested that it needs to be regulated. History With Disney announcing the combination of the CEO and chairman positions on October 6, 2011, past the date of shareholder proposal deadline, and increase CEO/chair pay, ISS called for a no vote against the four Nominating and Governance Committee board members at the 2012 annual meeting. ISS recommended to clients two candidates nominated by billionaire investor Carl Icahn to the drugmaker Forest Laboratories’ board of directors in a 2012 proxy contest. In 2013 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Institutional Investor Advisory Services
Institutional Investor Advisory Services India Limited (known colloquially as IiAS) is an Indian proxy firm that provides voting recommendations on shareholder resolutions of Indian listed companies. IiAS analyses shareholder resolutions to be addressed at AGMs, EGMs, postal ballots and Court Convened Meetings of nearly 300 companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange of India, and provides voting recommendations on these resolutions to institutional shareholders. The company was founded in 2010 and commenced operations in 2011. IiAS has been founded by Anil Singhvi and Amit Tandon. Anil Singhvi is a well-known financial expert in Indian markets and currently runs his own firm, ICAN Investors. Amit Tandon was earlier the CEO of Fitch Ratings in India. India's proxy advisory industry is relatively nascent – there are three firms, of which IiAS is the largest and the most established. Board of directors #Anil Singhvi, Founder non-executive dire ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Government Accountability Office
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is a legislative branch government agency that provides auditing, evaluative, and investigative services for the United States Congress. It is the supreme audit institution of the federal government of the United States. It identifies its core "mission values" as: accountability, integrity, and reliability. It is also known as the "congressional watchdog". Powers of GAO The work of the GAO is done at the request of congressional committees or subcommittees or is mandated by public laws or committee reports. It also undertakes research under the authority of the Comptroller General. It supports congressional oversight by: * auditing agency operations to determine whether federal funds are being spent efficiently and effectively; * investigating allegations of illegal and improper activities; * reporting on how well government programs and policies are meeting their objectives; * performing policy analyses and outlining options for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Proxy Statement
A proxy statement is a statement required of a firm when soliciting shareholder votes. This statement is filed in advance of the annual meeting. The firm needs to file a proxy statement, otherwise known as a Form DEF 14A (Definitive Proxy Statement), with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. This statement is useful in assessing how management is paid and potential conflict of interest issues with auditors. Contents The statement includes: *Voting procedure and information. * Background information about the company's nominated directors including relevant history in the company or industry, positions on other corporate boards, and potential conflicts in interest. * Board compensation. * Executive compensation, including salary, bonus, non-equity compensation, stock awards, options, and deferred compensation. Also, information is included about perks such as personal use of company aircraft, travel, and tax gross-ups. Many companies will also include pre-determined payo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
