ShareSoc News

ShareSoc Recommends Shareholders Vote Against the Recapitalization Proposals for Healthcare Locums

PRESS RELEASE 10 (02/09/2011) Further to our previous press release on the subject of Healthcare Locums, the UK Individual Shareholder Society (ShareSoc) has concluded that if the proposals to recapitalize the company are voted down, then it is likely that alternative proposals will be put forward that would be more advantageous to most shareholders. We previously criticised the proposals recommended to shareholders by the board because of the very substantial dilution of shareholders. Minority shareholders (such as the individual shareholders we represent) may ...

ShareSoc Publishes a Guide to Shareholder Activism

PRESS RELEASE 07 (25/07/2011) The UK Individual Shareholder Society (ShareSoc) has published a guide on “How to Form and Run a Shareholder Action Group”. This is aimed at private investors who occasionally feel disgruntled about the actions of companies and their directors, but do not know how to complain. ShareSoc believes that shareholder activism should be encouraged. Improving the “engagement” of shareholders with the companies in which they own a stake has been encouraged by many commentators and activism is one form of ...

ShareSoc submitted a reponse to the Sharman Inquiry on “going concern and liquidity risks”

ShareSoc submitted a reponse to the Sharman Inquiry on "going concern and liquidity risks". It is in this document: Sharman_Response

ShareSoc responds to the Independent Commision on Banking with a submission in response to their Interim Report

ShareSoc responded to the Independent Commision on Banking with this submission in response to their Interim Report: ICB_Consultation_Response. In summary we agree with much of the report but are not in favour of a UK "retail ring-fence".

ShareSoc Launches a New Manifesto for Shareholders

PRESS RELEASE 06 (16/06/2011) The UK Individual Shareholder Society (ShareSoc) has launched a new “Manifesto” which is a clear statement of what it will be promoting in future. It is aimed at tackling many of the faults in the existing operation and regulation of UK stock markets and businesses. For example it is generally recognised that the “engagement” of shareholders with the companies they own is inadequate. This has led to errant directors who seem sometimes to run companies in their own ...

ShareSoc Appoints Mark Bentley as a Director

PRESS RELEASE 05 (05/05/2011) The UK Individual Shareholder Society (ShareSoc) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mark Bentley as a Director of the Society. Mark has extensive experience of stock market investment and will be initially assisting the board of ShareSoc on a project to improve the available information about AIM companies, their Nomads and Directors and the general legal and regulatory environment for listed companies. A brief biography of Mr Bentley is as follows: Mark Bentley, M.A. has been a full-time stock ...

ShareSoc supports the proposals advocated by Laxey Partners at Alliance Trust

PRESS RELEASE 04 (21/04/2011) The UK Individual Shareholder Society (ShareSoc) has considered the issues raised by Laxey Partners in relation to Alliance Trust and the Resolutions proposed by them at the forthcoming AGM. We agree with the proposals by Laxey for the introduction of a Discount Control Mechanism (DCM) and the change to the voting arrangements for shares held in the Alliance Trust Savings Schemes. Our position is that we believe that it is not in shareholders’ interests to have a consistently wide ...

ShareSoc advocates Nomination Committees to improve Corporate Governance and Shareholder Engagement

PRESS RELEASE 03 (04/03/2011) The UK Individual Shareholder Society (ShareSoc) is throwing its weight behind proposals for the involvement of investors in the process that leads to the nomination of directors to the boards of companies. ShareSoc recently made a submission to the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) on the use of Nomination Committees to select auditors. In addition we would like to see this system also used for the appointment of directors and to set the remuneration of the directors. ShareSoc Chairman Roger Lawson ...

Acuity Growth VCT Shareholders urged to vote against reappointment of the Chairman and against the Remuneration Report

PRESS RELEASE 02 (25/02/2011) Shareholders in Acuity Growth VCT, with the support of ShareSoc, are calling for substantial changes to the board of the company. The final results for the financial year ending September 2010 were published on the 31st January 2011. These showed a 33% reduction in NAV and yet again, no dividend payment. This follows a similar dire performance in the previous year. The Directors of the company are now actively seeking a new investment manager. However this action is long ...

A New Shareholder Organisation to Represent Individual Investors in the UK

PRESS RELEASE 01 (14/02/2011) The “UK Individual Shareholders Society”, or “ShareSoc”, has been formed to represent individual shareholders (i.e. private investors, rather than institutions). The reasons for doing this are as follows: There are millions of private shareholders in the UK. They are not adequately represented at present and as a result they have little influence, while other organisations across Europe have tens of thousands of members. We need an active body to campaign for the rights of shareholders and to represent ...