Strategic collaboration enhances proxy voting
efficiency and supports higher levels of corporate
governance
NEW
YORK and LONDON and
JOHANNESBURG, Dec. 14,
2022 /PRNewswire/ -- To create a better proxy voting
experience and further extend the proxy voting process in
South Africa, global Fintech
leader, Broadridge Financial Solutions Inc. (NYSE:BR), and Strate,
South Africa's principal central
securities depository and central collateral platform, have
completed the integration of their respective end-to-end vote
processing solutions. This collaboration represents a shared
strategic commitment to drive greater levels of shareholder
engagement by both institutional and retail investors – at both
national and international levels.
"We are excited to launch our fully digital South African voting
service, supporting the growing desire of investors globally who
want to exercise their corporate governance entitlements in this
very strategic market," said Demi Derem, General Manager of
International Investor Communication Solutions, Broadridge. "Our
successful collaboration with Strate represents another critical
step in linking leading providers at the heart of financial
infrastructure with our network of global investors to enable
seamless investor voting and engagement."
Broadridge's extensive user community, including global and
domestic banks and brokers, custodians, wealth managers and local
agents, can now use the service, delivered in collaboration with
Strate and the Central Securities Depository Participants (CSDPs),
to streamline processes and achieve operational efficiency
throughout the proxy voting lifecycle in South Africa, while also supporting their
compliance obligations under South
Africa's Companies Act. Firms using the service can
obtain timely and accurate receipt of "golden copy" digital meeting
notifications sourced directly from Strate, a significantly
extended voting window (up to meeting-date-minus-one) for
underlying clients, and enhanced transparency through confirmation
of votes submitted.
"As a pioneer in digitisation in South
Africa, Strate partners with leading global technology
providers to collaborate on digitally innovative solutions, which
is why we are proud to have worked with Broadridge on our e-Voting
solution," said Gregory Naicker,
Strate Head of CSD Services.
"Through digital innovation we integrate and connect critical
players in the financial market ecosystem, leading to integrity and
trust in our markets."
"The partnership with Strate and Broadridge cements Standard
Bank's promise of delivering continuous value to our clients,
offering flexibility in choosing a proxy voting execution
partner, providing better voting deadlines, delivering
enhanced proxy disclosure information as well as moving towards
fully digital and automated electronic voting solutions," said
Llewelyn Ford, SBSA Head of Investor
Services, South Africa. "This
development moves the market closer to achieving the desired level
of efficiency and lowers risk in the proxy voting environment."
The South African service is the latest addition to Broadridge's
rapidly growing Direct Market Solutions (DMS) product suite, which
focuses on traditional sub custody voting-related activities.
Broadridge continues to commit to expanding its market coverage for
digital proxy processing, extended voting windows, and enhanced
voting transparency, with more markets to follow in 2023 and 2024.
The new South Africa service
offering complements Broadridge's leading voting solutions that
already provides 100% coverage across 100+ markets globally.
About Strate
As South Africa's principal
central securities depository and central collateral platform,
Strate serves the financial market through the safekeeping of the
legal, digital record of securities ownership, enabled through
registry, settlement and asset services, and through facilitating
the reuse of securities as collateral to optimise balance sheets
for the benefit of the South African economy.
Recognised locally and internationally as a trusted and neutral
financial market infrastructure (FMI), Strate has been a key
component of the financial market ecosystem for over 20 years,
responsible for delivering services critical to the smooth
functioning and stability of the South African financial
markets.
As a purpose-led company, Strate is committed to driving a
shared-value approach, whereby we partner with our stakeholders –
employees, clients, shareholders, regulators, government and
business partners – to unlock value and maintain a trusted
investment environment. We deliver value creation through our
contribution to a thriving, well-regulated and resilient financial
market and through our ability to promote market interoperability,
increase efficiencies, mitigate systemic risks, optimise the use of
capital and enhance market transparency.
About Broadridge
Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE: BR), a global Fintech
leader with more than $5 billion in
revenues, provides the critical infrastructure that powers
investing, corporate governance and communications to enable better
financial lives. We deliver technology-driven solutions that drive
business transformation for banks, broker-dealers, asset and wealth
managers and public companies. Broadridge's infrastructure serves
as a global communications hub enabling corporate governance by
linking thousands of public companies and mutual funds to tens of
millions of individual and institutional investors around the
world. Our technology and operations platforms underpin the daily
trading of more than U.S. $9 trillion
of equities, fixed income and other securities globally. A
certified Great Place to Work®, Broadridge is part of
the S&P 500® Index, employing over 14,000
associates in 21 countries.
For more information about us and what we can do for you, please
visit www.broadridge.com.
Broadridge Contacts:
Investors:
Edings Thibault
Head of Investor Relations, Broadridge
broadridgeir@broadridge.com
Media:
Gregg
Rosenberg
Corporate Communications
Gregg.Rosenberg@broadridge.com
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SOURCE Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.