Latest news with #Georgeson
Mint
10 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
Big Pay Packages Spark Growing Dissent Among UK Shareholders
Shareholder dissent over executive pay at British companies is rising just as firms seek to bolster pay packages to remain internationally competitive. Three times as many companies faced opposition from more than 20% of shareholders so far this year compared with the same period in 2024, data from proxy-solicitation firm Georgeson Inc. shows. With investors having already voted on remuneration reports from more than half of FTSE 350 companies, 16 faced dissent exceeding 20% between Jan. 1 and May 31 this year, up from five in 2024, the data shows. 'Last year, FTSE 350 companies were more conservative in recommending higher levels of pay, which led to high shareholder support and low levels of opposition,' said Daniel Veazey, Georgeson's corporate governance manager. Pay packages of UK-based chief executive officers have grown faster this year than those of US rivals, with companies racing to close the gap to attract and retain top talent. The median FTSE 100 CEO package increased 7% to £4.79 million in 2024, according to Deloitte. 'UK Plcs are feeling freer to propose new remuneration policies designed to remain competitive with US and EU peers,' said Sonia Gilbert, Clifford Chance's incentives partner. London Stock Exchange Group Plc came up against a shareholder revolt at its annual meeting on May 1, with 31% voting against the company's remuneration report, which saw CEO David Schwimmer take home £7.9 million in its latest financial year. Consumer giant Unilever Plc also faced close to 30% opposition against new boss Fernando Fernandez's base salary, which was just modestly short of his predecessor's. UK companies are challenging the status quo a little more this year, encouraged by widespread shareholder support in 2024 and relaxed Investment Association guidelines on pay, Georgeson's Veazey said. Of 55 FTSE 100 companies that had published their fiscal 2024 reports, 24 were seeking shareholder approval for new remuneration policies, compared with 16 at the same time last year, research by Deloitte in April shows. Of those proposing changes, more than 40% submitted their policies ahead of the usual three-year cycle. British American Tobacco Plc CEO Tadeu Luiz Marroco could earn as much as £18.2 million this year under a performance-related policy, a jump from the £6 million he earned in 2024. Compass Group Plc's Dominic Blakemore also stands to benefit from a proposed maximum payout of £15.3 million in 2025, up from the £9.5 million he earned in total last year. Both maximum figures are based on a 50% increase in the stock awards from the date of grant to vesting. These proposals highlight 'the need to attract top talent in a competitive global market and address pay compression challenges,' said Mitul Shah, a partner at Deloitte's executive remuneration and rewards practice. The UK government's decision to maintain the removal of the cap on banker bonuses has gone some way to bridging the transatlantic gap. Bank of America Corp. is the latest to join a slew of rivals in scrapping the crisis-era limit. Some of the world's biggest banks are pushing UK regulators to accelerate plans to ease rules around deferred bonuses so they can apply the lighter regime to payouts for 2025. This follows long-time calls by executives including London Stock Exchange CEO Julia Hoggett that restrictions on pay were hindering companies' efforts to attract game-changing candidates and undermining the attractiveness of the City of London. Performance, especially in sectors with key competitors in the US and a tight market for talent, will ultimately steer how amenable shareholders are to boosting compensation. 'It comes down to the right shareholder engagement,' Clifford Chance's Gilbert said.
Straits Times
14 hours ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Big pay packages spark growing dissent among UK shareholders
Three times as many companies faced opposition from more than 20 per cent of shareholders so far this year compared with the same period in 2024. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG LONDON – Shareholder dissent over executive pay at British companies is rising just as firms seek to bolster pay packages to remain internationally competitive. Three times as many companies faced opposition from more than 20 per cent of shareholders so far this year compared with the same period in 2024, data from proxy-solicitation firm Georgeson shows. With investors having already voted on remuneration reports from more than half of Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) 350 companies, 16 faced dissent exceeding 20 per cent between Jan 1 and May 31 in 2025, up from five in 2024, the data shows. 'In 2024, FTSE 350 companies were more conservative in recommending higher levels of pay, which led to high shareholder support and low levels of opposition,' said Mr Daniel Veazey, Georgeson's corporate governance manager. Pay packages of UK-based chief executive officers (CEO) have grown faster in 2025 than those of US rivals, with companies racing to close the gap to attract and retain top talent. The median FTSE 100 CEO package increased 7 per cent to £4.79 million (S$8.24 million) in 2024, according to Deloitte. 'UK public limited companies are feeling freer to propose new remuneration policies designed to remain competitive with US and EU peers,' said Ms Sonia Gilbert, Clifford Chance's incentives partner. London Stock Exchange Group came up against a shareholder revolt at its annual meeting on May 1, with 31 per cent voting against the company's remuneration report, which saw CEO David Schwimmer take home £7.9 million in its latest financial year. Consumer giant Unilever also faced close to 30 per cent opposition against new boss Fernando Fernandez's base salary, which was just modestly short of his predecessor's. UK companies are challenging the status quo a little more this year, encouraged by widespread shareholder support in 2024 and relaxed Investment Association guidelines on pay, Georgeson's Mr Veazey said. Of 55 FTSE 100 companies that had published their fiscal 2024 reports, 24 were seeking shareholder approval for new remuneration policies, compared with 16 at the same time the year before, research by Deloitte in April shows. Of those proposing changes, more than 40 per cent submitted their policies ahead of the usual three-year cycle. British American Tobacco's CEO Tadeu Luiz Marroco could earn as much as £18.2 million this year under a performance-related policy, a jump from the £6 million he earned in 2024. Compass Group's Dominic Blakemore also stands to benefit from a proposed maximum payout of £15.3 million in 2025, up from the £9.5 million he earned in total in 2024. Both maximum figures are based on a 50 per cent increase in the stock awards from the date of grant to vesting. These proposals highlight 'the need to attract top talent in a competitive global market and address pay compression challenges', said Mr Mitul Shah, a partner at Deloitte's executive remuneration and rewards practice. The UK government's decision to maintain the removal of the cap on banker bonuses has gone some way to bridging the transatlantic gap. Bank of America is the latest to join a slew of rivals in scrapping the crisis-era limit. Some of the world's biggest banks are pushing UK regulators to accelerate plans to ease rules around deferred bonuses so they can apply the lighter regime to payouts for 2025. This follows long-time calls by executives including LSEG CEO Julia Hoggett that restrictions on pay were hindering companies' efforts to attract game-changing candidates and undermining the attractiveness of the City of London. Performance, especially in sectors with key competitors in the US and a tight market for talent, will ultimately steer how amenable shareholders are to boosting compensation. 'It comes down to the right shareholder engagement,' Clifford Chance's Ms Gilbert said. BLOOMBERG Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Bloomberg
15 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Big Pay Packages Spark Growing Dissent Among UK Shareholders
Shareholder dissent over executive pay at British companies is rising just as firms seek to bolster pay packages to remain internationally competitive. Three times as many companies faced opposition from more than 20% of shareholders so far this year compared with the same period in 2024, data from proxy-solicitation firm Georgeson Inc. shows.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
BNY Mellon Alcentra Global Multi-Strategy Credit Fund, Inc. Announces Final Results of Quarterly Tender Offer
NEW YORK, May 16, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BNY Mellon Alcentra Global Multi-Strategy Credit Fund, Inc. (the "Fund") today announced the final results of its quarterly tender offer (the "Tender Offer") for up to 2.5% of the Fund's issued and outstanding shares of common stock (the "Shares"). The Tender Offer, which expired at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time on May 15, 2025, was oversubscribed. Therefore, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Tender Offer, the Fund will purchase Shares from all tendering shareholders on a pro rata basis, after disregarding fractions and after accepting all shares for repurchase from shareholders who own less than 100 shares and who tendered all of their shares, based on the number of Shares properly tendered ("Pro-Ration Factor"). The final results of the Tender Offer are provided in the table below. Number of SharesTendered Number of TenderedShares to BePurchased Pro-Ration Factor Purchase Price* 386,875 42,047 0.105390 $86.91 *Purchase Price is equal to 100% of the Fund's net asset value per Share as of March 31, 2025. If you have questions about the Tender Offer and hold Shares through a broker or other nominee holder, you can call your broker or other nominee holder directly. You may also call Georgeson LLC ("Georgeson"), the Fund's Tender Offer information agent, toll free at (877) 278-9670, with any questions. The terms and conditions of the Tender Offer were set forth in the Fund's Offer to Purchase, the related Letter of Transmittal and other related documents. The Fund filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") a tender offer statement on Schedule TO and related exhibits, including an Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and other related documents (the "Offer Documents"). Shareholders may obtain copies of the Offer Documents, without charge, by contacting Georgeson toll free at (877) 278-9670. Shareholders can also obtain the Offer Documents free of charge on the SEC's website at **** The Fund has a limited term of approximately six years from the date it commenced operations. Accordingly, the Fund is scheduled to terminate at the close of business on or around August 29, 2025, the sixth anniversary of the closing date of the Fund's initial public offering (the "Termination Date"). The Fund's Board of Directors may, however, in its sole discretion and without shareholder approval, extend the Termination Date by up to one year to a date on or before August 30, 2026. Consequently, unless the Board determines to extend the Termination Date, this Offer was the final quarterly tender offer conducted by the Fund. **** BNY Mellon Alcentra Global Multi-Strategy Credit Fund, Inc. is a diversified, closed-end management investment company. BNY Mellon Investment Adviser, Inc., the investment adviser for the Fund, is part of BNY Investments. BNY Investments is one of the world's largest asset managers, with $2.0 trillion in assets under management as of March 31, 2025. Through a client-first approach, BNY Investments brings investors specialist expertise through its seven investment firms offering solutions across every major asset class and backed by the breadth and scale of BNY. Additional information on BNY Investments is available on Follow us on LinkedIn for the latest company news and activity. BNY Investments is a division of BNY, which has $53.1 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration as of March 31, 2025. Established in 1784, BNY is America's oldest bank. Today, BNY powers capital markets around the world through comprehensive solutions that help clients manage and service their financial assets throughout the investment life cycle. BNY is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK). Additional information is available on Follow us on LinkedIn or visit our newsroom for the latest company news. BNY Investments' website is intended to allow investors public access to information regarding the Fund and does not, and is not intended to, incorporate the website in this release. The Fund's investment returns and principal values will fluctuate so that an investor's shares may be worth more or less than the original cost. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. View source version on Contacts For Press Inquiries:BNY Mellon Investment Adviser, Taylor For Other Inquiries:BNY Mellon Securities CorporationThe National Marketing Desk240 Greenwich StreetNew York, New York 102861-800-334-6899
Reuters
06-02-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Australian companies facing investor anger over executive pay at near record levels, says study
SYDNEY, Feb 7 (Reuters) - The number of Australian companies facing investor opposition over remuneration plans held near record levels for a second straight year in 2024, according to a study by shareholder advisor Georgeson. The study, shared first with Reuters, underscores not only frustration with high executive pay at a time when the cost of living has risen but also anger over corporate scandals. Forty of Australia's 300 biggest companies had more than a quarter of investors vote against their remuneration scheme at their annual general meeting last year. That was just under record 41 a year earlier which was double the amount in 2022, the study showed. The vote became mandatory in Australia in 2011. Under Australia's unusual "two strikes" rule, companies must put a remuneration report to a shareholder vote annually, and a "no" vote above 25% is a strike. That has no immediate legally binding effect but a "no" vote two years in a row lets shareholders hold another vote on whether to remove a company's entire board. Last year, the number of companies that experienced a shareholder vote against executive pay for a second year running jumped to 12 from two in 2023. However, none of the follow-up votes on whether to sack the board were successful. Even among companies where the remuneration vote carried, the average size of winning votes has declined in the past five years, the report said. "When you've got a kind of economic situation where there's cost of living pressure, higher interest rates and so forth, the optics of very high executive pay are going to be more in the spotlight," Paul Murphy, Georgeson's head of ESG for Asia Pacific, said in an interview. The vote has become an all-encompassing platform to express sentiment towards a company, he added. "When the company's been under the spotlight because it's having sort of customer service issues or having some sort of conduct scandal, then what you tend to get is a very high protest." Companies hit with shareholder strikes over remuneration in the past two years include airline Qantas ( opens new tab which was grappling with a deluge of negative headlines about industrial relations, flight cancellations and the conduct of its former CEO. Iron ore miner Fortecue ( opens new tab also received a strike. The country's biggest office landlord Dexus ( opens new tab received a second strike in 2024 but survived the so-called "board spill" motion.
