ShareSoc Blog
This blog gives you the latest topical news plus some informal comments on them from ShareSoc’s directors and other contributors. These are the personal comments of the authors and not necessarily the considered views of ShareSoc. The writers may hold shares in the companies mentioned. You can add your own comments on the blog posts, but note that ShareSoc reserves the right to remove or edit comments where they are inappropriate or defamatory.
There is more news given in the News page of our web site and more analysis of news is provided in our monthly newsletter for members – see the Newsletters page.
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In February and March 2021, we worked on:
1. Woodford Campaign: Leigh Day now have their funding and insurance in place and have submitted their letter before action (LBA). 947 people registered for the joint ShareSoc/Mello event on 9th March which went well with much very positive feedback.
2. Sirius Minerals Shareholder Group: We continue to review the evidence and hope to move to the next stage soon.
3. Voting Guidance and Shareholder engagement: We continue to test our new ideas with a pilot ...
The Investors Chronicle have published on 30 March 2021 a useful table comparing the 4 ongoing Woodford Claims:
(note, as at 10 June 2022, Leigh Day have >12,000 claimants and Harcus Parker c 7,500. ShareSoc do not know any more recent numbers for RGL and Slater & Gordon.)
ShareSoc endorsed the Leigh Day Claim, in November 2020 on the basis of information available at that time. The table highlights that the Leigh Day claim and Harcus Parker claim are both against Link, both ...
ShareSoc News Item by Cliff Weight, Director
117 people registered for our 23 March 2021 webinar and at least 94 attended, much higher than the 26 the previous year at the East India Club. The organisers received much positive feedback, for which they are grateful, and indicates that similar future events should be planned. At the webinar:
Cliff Weight did a brief introduction of why the VCT Investors Group was formed and why it exists – to lobby on poor performance, poor ...
Give Growing Companies Better Access to Retail Shareholders to Boost the UK Economy
ShareSoc News Item by Mike Dennis, Director
A recent survey1 of ShareSoc members was undertaken in conjunction with Aquis Stock Exchange (AQSE) and it has revealed that many individual investors do not feel they have good, equal access to growth stocks.
Key findings of the survey1
55% of individual investors polled feel they don’t have, or aren’t sure they have, good access to growth companies
Over 80% of respondents feel individual ...
Following publication of the Government’s consultation Restoring trust in audit and corporate governance the FRC will be hosting a series of webinars and roundtables to provide further insight on key aspects of the consultation and to provide interested stakeholders with an opportunity to share their views and comment on the government’s proposals.
Further details about how to participate in the FRC’s extensive engagement programme is available here. The FRC have organised a series of webinars for those interested in the Government's latest consultation ...
ShareSoc News Item, by Cliff Weight, Director.
Proposal to adopt ISQM (UK) 1 Quality Management For Firms That Perform Audits Or Reviews Of Financial Statements, Or Other Assurance Or Related Services Engagements, ISQM (UK) 2 Engagement Quality Reviews, and revise ISA (UK) 220 (Revised November 2019) Quality Control For An Audit Of Financial Statements
ShareSoc and UKSA made a joint response to this FRC consultation. The key points we made were:
We believe most shareholders look to audits of annual financial statements to underpin their confidence and trust ...
SEC still has a 20% discount (258p share price versus 312p NAV) and the Directors own pitifully few shares so have little skin in the game and no incentive to sort this out.
I have registered my protest vote, via interactive investors' excellent voting platform (NOTE TO HARGREAVES LANSDOWN - you really ought to provide a better voting service to your customers). I think my vote is a protest vote as it looks likely the directors will win. Other shareholders should consider ...
There is a very good article in this week’s Investors Chronicle by Mary McDougall on the subject of platform transfers. I have sent her the following email:
Mary,
On the subject of platform transfers, you are quite right to say that “It appears progress has been pitiful”. I have done several such transfers in the past and none has been completed in under 3 months. The FCA initiatives to improve matters has had minimal impact. I am currently still trying to get one ...
Failings
The Government BEIS Department have published a white paper entitled “Restoring trust in audit and corporate governance”. It’s an acknowledgement that the trust of investors in directors who manage the companies they invest in has long ago been lost. And the trust in auditors that the accounts issued by companies are accurate and give a fair view of a company’s financial position has also been lost.
There are few stock market investors who have not been affected by one or more scandals ...
ShareSoc led a campaign fronted by Nick Curtis at the August 2019 AGM to remove the directors and institute governance changes. There had been concerns from shareholders around the length of director service, investment management fees, performance fee calculations and high management costs.
Whilst the majority of the directors remained, Paul Thomas, the Temporis representative, was removed and given the high level of shareholder dissatisfaction (at nearly 50% of the vote) Nick Curtis was asked to go on the board of Ventus. ...
