THIS WEEK’S TOPIC: Should companies be required to adopt a hybrid of both physical and virtual annual general meetings (AGMs) in the future?
The medium in which AGMs are held should not be as important as the purpose of holding them. It is quite disappointing to read that shareholder attendance for Singapore listcos’ meetings in 2020 fell by 70 per cent compared to 2019 numbers. Granted, this could be due to the switch from physical to online meetings due to the pandemic but it should not cause such a drastic drop in shareholder participation.
A quick glance of the SGX website shows that almost all the listco meetings for April 2021 will be ”held by electronic means”. Hence, shareholders really need to gear up to the new norm of digital meetings.
According to Berkshire Hathaway chairman and CEO Warren Buffett, investors should invest in companies that they both understand and believe will offer long-term value. If this statement by one of the world’s most successful investors is taken seriously, then AGMs – whether virtual or physical – are the best place for shareholders to find out, directly from the management, about the future of the company.
Mario Singh
Chief Executive Officer
Fullerton Markets
