Investors write to FTSE cos for new group to ease corporate governance issues – FT

(Reuters) – Some of the world’s biggest investors have proposed forming a new group, which will include board members of top UK companies, to address stewardship and corporate governance concerns, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.

The Investor Forum – a nonprofit group that facilitates engagement between UK firms and institutional investors – has written to chairpersons of various FTSE 100 companies for fresh discussions to help settle contentious topics such as executive pay and overboarding ahead of the 2023 AGM season, the report said.

The letter, which was sent on Tuesday and seen by the Financial Times, follows a report by corporate communications advisory firm Tulchan Communications that highlighted a breakdown in the relationship between British boards and shareholders, the report said.

The Investor Forum did not immediately respond to a Reuters request seeking a copy of the letter. Reuters could not immediately verify the contents of the Tulchan report.

Britain’s corporate governance regulator said in November that companies there fail to reveal if meetings with shareholders alter their behaviour, such as in setting pay for top executives.

Britain’s asset managers too in November had called on company bosses to steer clear of inflation-busting pay rises as the country grapples with a cost-of-living crisis.

(Reporting by Kanjyik Ghosh in Bengaluru; Editing Nivedita Bhattacharjee)