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ASFA backs trustee shareholder activism
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) has backed the Chartered Secretaries of Australia (CSA) with respect to direct voting for shareholders.
In a letter to the CSA, ASFA director of policy and research Michaela Anderson said ASFA’s view was that it was best practice for fund trustees to be active shareowners, which ASFA defined as including not only proxy voting but also engaging with companies.
“The objective of any activity is protecting and enhancing shareholder value,” she said.
Anderson said ASFA also believed voting was important because it was one of the mechanisms by which shareholders could directly impact on company decisions.
“In ASFA’s view, trustees should not remain passive shareholders as their voting rights are a valuable asset of the fund,” she said. “Trustees should seek to exercise their voting rights on important matters, even if they actively choose to abstain on a particular motion.”
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
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