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SIGnet Launches Tyne-Tees Investor Group

SIGnet, a not-for-profit organisation, is excited to announce the launch of a new group, for members in the Tyne-Tees area. Currently, the nearest group is in Leeds. SIGnet is offering this new Tyne-Tees group for members in the northeast. You are invited: to an online meeting to explain more about the group, meet other investors, and arrange our first group meetings. This launch meeting is scheduled at 7pm on 8th February and is expected to last approximately 90 minutes. It is open to ...
Post Date: January 16, 2023 Read more

Woodford Campaign Update 10 – 11 January 2023

Woodford Campaign Update 10 Group Litigation Order Hearing The Group Litigation Order (GLO) request was heard in court between 15th and 20th December. The request was a joint submission by Leigh Day and Harcus Parker, with a subsequent request from RGL to be included. Surprisingly, the judge decided against granting a GLO, favouring instead bespoke case management by the court, as requested by the defendant, Link. This means that there won’t be any imminent deadline for registering with a claim. The claims will still be ...
Post Date: January 11, 2023 Read more

Capital gains tax is hideously complex and needs to be simplified

ShareSoc Director Cliff Weight has written an opinion piece, which the FT published on 11th January (requires subscription to view). Cliff argues that Capital gains tax (CGT) is hideously complex and needs to be simplified. This is even more urgent as the reduction of the CGT threshold from £12,300 to £6,000 and then £3,000 will draw many more into the net of those having to complete CGT returns.   Long term shareholders of companies, where there have been rights issues, consolidations, capital repayments, demergers ...
Post Date: January 11, 2023 Read more

Review of the G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance

With apologies for not publishing this News Item earlier, on 20 October, ShareSoc responded to the Public Consultation on the Review of the G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance What we would like is a fiduciary obligation, that requires the nominee to have a  clear duty to vote and to take account of beneficial owners’ views. We are still considering how best to express our views on this issue and in particular whether it should be a responsibility and whether it should be in ...
Post Date: January 10, 2023 Read more

Lord Lee asks Parliamentary Question about Capital Gains Tax

Baroness Penn, Treasury, has provided the following answer to the written parliamentary question (HL3755) from Lord Lee, Patron of ShareSoc: Question: To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of (1) the number of additional taxpayers who will have to complete Capital Gains tax returns as a result of the proposed reduction in threshold, (2) the amount of additional tax revenue that is likely to be raised, and (3) the extra cost of administration that will be required as a result of ...
Post Date: December 15, 2022 Read more

If you are a shareholder in Purplebricks make sure your vote counts

Various publications have been reporting recently on plans by an activist investor, Lecram Holdings, to oust the present Chair of Purplebricks, Paul Pindar, after several years of value-destroying performance. A General Meeting to vote on the removal of the Chair and to vote onto the board a new director, Harry Hill (founder of Rightmove and ex CEO of Countrywide) will take place on the 19th December. The vote could be quite close and individual investors hold a significant proportion of the ...
Post Date: December 5, 2022 Read more

Better Finance endorses ShareSoc Investing Basics

Better Finance, The European Federation of Investors and Financial Services Users, has given a strong endorsement of ShareSoc Investing Basics, our recently launched educational video series: Aleksandra Mączyńska, Executive Director for BETTER FINANCE said : “I congratulate ShareSoc for this excellent initiative! ShareSoc Investing Basics and its investor education videos provide badly needed tools and information for all those people who are looking to invest but don’t know where to start. Individual investors need access to independent and clear information to empower them and help ...
Post Date: November 16, 2022 Read more

Recovering the £½ Billion in unclaimed Child Trust Funds

One of the goals of ShareSoc Investing Basics is to raise awareness of the Child Trust Funds. You may recall Gordon Brown introduced Child Trust Funds in 2005 as explained in this article in This is Money, who are partnering with ShareSoc to help the Investing Basics videos reach as wide an audience as possible. Every child born in the UK between 1/9/2002 and 2/1/2011 was given £250, placed into a trust fund, for access at 18. With no other additional investment, the funds for ...
Post Date: November 13, 2022 Read more

FCA Update

FCA Enforcement Actions Cliff Weight and Peter Parry met with Executives from the FCA Primary Markets and Secondary Markets teams on 28 October. We discussed a number of regulatory issues and shared various concerns. The nature of these meetings is that much is confidential and the FCA cannot comment on specific cases if that might be prejudicial to those being investigated, nor can they comment on cases that are not known to be in the public eye. I am pleased to report the ...
Post Date: November 8, 2022 Read more

ShareSoc Investing Basics launch at London Stock Exchange

ShareSoc is delighted to announce the launch of the ShareSoc Investing Basics educational video series. The series is designed to engage and educate people of all ages about investing. Ten bite-sized episodes offer an irreverent, entertaining and surprisingly informative romp through the basics of investing. Unbiased knowledge, anytime, anywhere, for everyone. Presented by former BBC business correspondent turned full-time investor, Glen Goodman, with a phalanx of animated graphics to assist him, the series dismantles financial jargon into words anyone can understand, spelling out ...
Post Date: October 26, 2022 Read more

FRC guidance on AGMs

FRC guidance on AGMs The FRC AGM Good Practice Guidance was published in July 2022. Cliff Weight and Peter Parry were members of the working party that helped develop the new guidance. Cliff said: “This new FRC Guidance is another important step on the journey to wider participation and better engagement between companies and investors. Of course, it does not deal with shareholders who hold their shares via platforms – that issue is being addressed by the BEIS, the Law Commission and most ...
Post Date: September 15, 2022 Read more

FCA Annual Meeting 10am 15 September – Virtual Meeting

This meeting is open to all. You can register here: https://webinars.fca.org.uk/annual-public-meeting-2022 You can also submit questions if you wish. I have submitted a question on behalf of ShareSoc: ShareSoc, a not for profit independent organisation, dedicated to supporting individual investors, has made a considerable investment in producing an attractive video series, designed to help new investors. Will the FCA help to promote this series, to ensure that the general public is well informed about the basic principles of sound investment practice? Will you meet with ShareSoc ...
Post Date: September 15, 2022 Read more

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