Company boards spend a good deal of time, as they should, planning for who’ll take over for the CEO. Most have a relatively short list of senior executives who are being groomed and evaluated for the job. You know if you’re on that list and where you rank, and there’s generally a set timeline for […]
When the investment story of 2020 is written, it will be a thick volume – a global pandemic, an uncanny rebound in stocks and aggressive interventions by the Fed. But there will also be a chapter on the return of the Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC), a deal structure last seen about a decade ago […]
History has a way of repeating itself, particularly in finance. In the last financial crisis a dozen years ago, banks received taxpayer-backed bailouts and paid hefty bonuses to their executives. The uproar was loud and lasting. Now Wall Street seems poised for a repeat, after a massive federal coronavirus stimulus and a liquidity jolt from […]
More US companies are preparing to disclose their climate-related financial risks, but they face challenges to measure these risks and integrate them in their financial reporting. These were among the findings of a new report that explores the extent to which US companies have adopted the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures […]
Investors who follow climate risk have had a dizzying few weeks. Beyond the reports about record-setting floods in the Midwest and predictions of a climate apocalypse, there were climate-related shareholder votes at two big oil companies and a progress report on corporate climate disclosures. Important as they were, these events held little good news for […]
Warren Buffett and Jamie Dimon are at it again. The pair joined forces today on a WSJ op-ed to call for an end to earnings guidance. Is this really the best advice they have to offer given the issues that dominate boardrooms today?
Uber isn’t having a leadership crisis. It’s having a shareholder revolt. It has been clear for some time that imposing new procedures aimed at changing the company’s culture would require Mr. Kalanick to give up the reins as CEO. In normal circumstances, the board would decide on a course of action, take a vote and […]
A high powered investor group led by Warren Buffett and Jamie Dimon revealed their recommendations for improving corporate governance last week. The announcement was flawless – a show to rival any Broadway opening – but the dazzling cast couldn’t make up for a weak report. But while their show closed early, the authors’ clout is […]
Vanguard and Blackrock, two of the world’s largest fund managers, recently warned corporate boards to expect tougher scrutiny on governance issues during this year’s proxy balloting. Growling like this can be an effective communication strategy, up to a point.
It’s hard to square the statement by Olympus that its M&A transactions, which are now the subject of an independent investigation, “were in no way improper.” Presumably, the propriety of the deals is up to the investigation to determine. It’s precisely that sort of statement that makes investors skeptical about the company’s commitment to shedding […]