Greater transparency of proxy advice

Proxy advice assists institutional shareholders to make decisions on how to vote on matters put to shareholders for approval at company meetings. Among these institutional shareholders are superannuation funds who make decisions on behalf of the millions of Australians who have their superannuation savings invested in shares.

Given the influential role of proxy advisers in corporate governance in Australia and the high degree of institutional share ownership, the Government is consulting on the adequacy of the current regulatory regime for proxy advice and developing reform options that would strengthen the transparency and accountability of proxy advice.

Therefore, we are seeking feedback from stakeholders on options that aim to:

• ensure independence between superannuation funds and proxy advice;
• facilitate engagement between companies and proxy advisers; and
• require suitable licensing for the provision of proxy advice.