Regulation
UK Corporate Governance Code, 9 January, 2020
FRC governance report calls for ‘greater focus’ on culture and strategy
Watchdog warns that many firms are failing to fully consider the importance of purpose to culture and strategy, or take stakeholder views into account.
Corporate governance, 7 January, 2020
ISS governance rating downgrade ‘can hit share performance’
Research shows the downgrading of a firm’s ISS governance rating can result in a 1% slide in share performance—and the fall in value is not recovered.
Analysis, 2 January, 2020
Key trends in corporate governance for 2020
Five leading voices in corporate governance explain their priorities—and predictions—for the year ahead.
News review, 23 December, 2019
2019: The year in governance
This year saw the climate crisis accepted as a board-level issue, audit reviews, a UK election and a new focus on human rights and business purpose.
Audit reform, 19 December, 2019
Brydon review: ‘true and fair’ must go while fraud becomes auditor responsibility
Other proposals include audit committee chairs being grilled at AGMs and a new statement of purpose to cement auditors’ public interest role.
Financial reporting, 16 December, 2019
FRC is ‘working on a UK version of Sarbanes–Oxley’
One of the Kingman review’s key recommendations for reforming audit was a version of US Sarbox rules, a proposal supported by many audit committee chairs.
Sustainable finance, 10 December, 2019
European agreement on sustainable business taxonomy divides opinion
European institutions have agreed a taxonomy of sustainable economic activity, but critics warn it could impose “unjustified additional burdens” on firms.
Sustainable economy, 9 December, 2019
Designing a suitable taxonomy for a sustainable future
The taxonomy of sustainable finance must be a tool that helps companies grow and create jobs, while facilitating the transition to a greener economy.
Regulation, 6 December, 2019
Norway pushes for mandatory human rights due diligence
Draft act imposes a duty for firms to know the “salient risks” to human rights in direct operations and provides a “right to information” about any impact.
Research, 3 December, 2019
Audit committees ‘need a makeover’ to help fix audit
Academics warn that committees require corporate governance expertise, greater independence and sufficient time if they are to ensure high-quality audit.