Corporate governance study US companies

The Financial Executives Institute has published on-line the results of a US survey of over 300 public companies, sharing insights on codes of conduct, board structure and audit committee practices. The survey, which was conducted in May 2002, reveals that 83% of companies have a code of conduct, but only 10% have a separate code for financial officers/managers. ... lees meer

Transparency International releases new Bribe Payers Index

-> Russian, Chinese, Taiwanese and S. Korean companies widely seen using bribes in developing countries -> High propensity to bribe overseas also seen for companies from Italy, Hong Kong, Malaysia, United States, Japan, France and Spain -> Construction and arms industries top sectors of heaviest bribery Transparency International (TI), the global anti-corruption organisation, today released its Bribe Payers Index (BPI) 2002, showing very high levels of bribery in developing countries by corporations from Russia, China, Taiwan and South Korea, as well as numerous leading industrial nations, all of which now have laws making corrupt payments to foreign officials a crime. -The laws are not being properly enforced. Our new survey leaves no doubt that large numbers of multinational corporations from the richest nations are pursuing a criminal course to win contracts in the leading emerging market economies of the world,” said TI Chairman Peter Eigen. ... lees meer

Socially Responsible Investment (Sri) – ABI Leads the Way with New Guidelines

The ABI (Association of British Insurers) today issued new investment guidelines to improve disclosure by Britain’s companies of their approach to corporate social responsibility. The guidelines respond to the widespread and growing interest in corporate social responsibility amongst the public and investors. The guidelines will encourage companies to adopt best practice when responding to external social, ethical and environmental risks. By setting out what institutional investors will expect to see disclosed in the annual reports of companies in which they hold stakes, the guidelines will increase transparency without imposing unnecessary new burdens. ... lees meer

FTSE4Good Indexes Add Companies After Semi-Annual Review

Last week, the London-based stock market index firm FTSE Group announced the results of the semi-annual review of its FTSE4Good series of socially responsible investment (SRI) indexes. An additional 82 companies (one of them is KPN) have met the FTSE’s corporate social responsibility criteria and will be added to several of the FTSE4Good indexes. Many of the companies newly joining the FTSE4Good universe are large American firms. FTSE also released performance statistics of the indexes since the last review. ... lees meer

NRC: ‘Geitenwollensokkenfondsen’ leren beleggen

(Gepubliceerd in het NRC van 25 maart 2002). Ethische beleggings- fondsen blijken qua rendement niet onder te doen voor conventionele fondsen, zo wijst een studie van de Maastrichtse universiteit uit. Best-in-class beleggen is het recept. De ethische fondsen zijn in opkomst en ,,de groei is spectaculair”. ... lees meer

Environmental costs for small companies may be higher than you think

Companies with less than ten employees may be losing money and opportunities as a result of lack of knowledge of environmentally-friendly work practices, suggest researchers at Cardiff University. Investment in environmental training is unlikely to be a priority for many small companies, yet this small detail alone could help to reduce environmental liabilities and costs, and improve operational efficiency. Experts at the University’s Centre for Research in the Built Environment (CRiBE), aim to redress local companies’ attitudes to environmental training by offering free training – which is custom-made to suit an individual’s learning pace. ... lees meer

Simon Zadek in het FD: ‘De tijd voor intelligent kapitalisme is aangebroken’

(Gepubliceerd in Het Financieele Dagblad van 11 maart 2002). Wie een tweede Enron wil voorkomen, moet zijn heil niet zoeken in nog meer regelingen, maar gewoon het bonussysteem voor fondsbeheerders en de opleidingen voor accountants veranderen. Want dan pak je de oorzaken van het probleem aan in plaats van de symptomen. Dat is de mening van Simon Zadek, Chief Executive van de internationale organisatie AccountAbility. ... lees meer

IRRC Finds Companies Pay High Proportion of Non-Audit Related Fees to Auditors

The Investor Responsibility Research Center (IRRC) has released its extensive review and analysis of the fees public companies pay to their auditors, which were broken out into fees for audit and non-audit services for the first time last year under new SEC regulations. The Audit/Non-Audit Fee Landscape: Analysis and Benchmarks covers more than 1,200 companies in the S&P 500, S&P MidCap, and S&P SmallCap indexes. ... lees meer

Which Government Bonds Are Appropriate for Sustainable Investors?

Oekom Research recently conducted a study that evaluates the sustainability of governments that issue bonds popular with investors. In order for institutions to implement sustainability investing, they need information about the social and environmental performance of potential investments. With regard to picking stocks, there are a number of sources for research on corporate social responsibility. Information on the social and environmental policies and performance of national governments, however, is more scattered and scarce, making social investors’ bond choices more difficult. ... lees meer

Duurzaam beleggen in opmars in Europa

De Sustainable Investment Research International Group (SiRi) heeft met steun van Euronext en CSR Europe een onderzoek uitgevoerd naar duurzaam beleggen in Europa. Uit het onderzoek blijkt dat duurzaam beleggen flink in opmars is. ... lees meer