Innovative New Service Facilitates Active Ownership through Domestic and Cross-Border Voting
Rockville, MD; London, U.K. – March 1, 2012 – Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), a leading provider of end-to-end corporate governance solutions, today announced that Clearstream, has launched an enhanced proxy voting service facilitated through ISS’ ProxyExchange™ platform.
The new service brings together Clearstream’s expertise of Eurobonds, equities, fixed income and investment funds with ISS’ 26 years of corporate governance experience and its deep knowledge of local market proxy voting practices for both its International Central Securities Depository (ICSD) and Central Securities Depository (CSD) for Germany. Through its extensive global presence, ISS has unparalleled experience in the process of acquiring, analyzing and processing meeting information across more than 100 established and emerging markets.
Stephen Harvey, Managing Director and Head of the ISS Business, said: “Innovation and execution are ISS hallmarks so we are delighted to have delivered Clearstream’s new, enhanced proxy voting service, in advance of the 2012 proxy season. Clearstream and its customers throughout Europe will now be able to leverage ISS’ industry-leading proxy voting platform, dedicated client service and in-depth knowledge of local market voting practices.”
Clearstream customers will be able to send and/or receive information via SWIFT and/or through the ISS online system, ProxyExchange™ and will also be able to manage meetings for assets in the Clearstream securitieslending programme and vote on positions pledged as collateral as part of the CMS with Clearstream. Customer data protection is handled by multiple layers of hardware and software security in ISS’ Geneva data facility.
Global market initiatives such as the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment and recent regulatory developments such as the introduction of investor stewardship codes in various markets, highlight the important governance role of investors in exercising their active ownership rights, including voting at company meetings. The implementation of the EU Shareholder Rights Directive is working to remove the practical impediments to voting, such as shareblocking, in EU markets. This enhanced solution addresses many of the pain-points, ultimately making it easier for Clearstream’s customers to exercise their voting rights.
Phillip Brown, Member of the Executive Board and Head of Client Relations Europe & Americas and Head of Product Management at Clearstream, said: “As the focus on corporate governance intensifies globally, investors increasingly need state-of-the art asset services to support their active ownership initiatives. Our new, enhanced proxy voting solution offers customers a superior quality service across the widest possible set of securities and markets.”
