As shareholder meeting season approaches, electronic voting and electronic proxy systems that allow shareholders to exercise voting rights online without attending meetings in person are drawing attention. These systems are regarded as tools to expand shareholder participation and improve corporate decision-making efficiency by removing time and location constraints.
According to the financial investment industry on the 17th, Korea Securities Depository (KSD) has been expanding related services since introducing electronic voting in 2010 and electronic proxy services in 2015. During February and March each year, when shareholder meetings are concentrated, KSD operates a dedicated task force to support annual general meetings and ensure stable service provision.
Electronic voting is a system where shareholders exercise voting rights in advance through the internet without attending shareholder meetings. Electronic proxy is one method of soliciting proxy voting rights, where proxy solicitors post proxy forms and reference documents on their website, and shareholders grant proxies online.
Using these systems, shareholders can exercise voting rights without attending meetings in person and participate without physical constraints even when multiple companies hold meetings on the same day. Companies can also more easily secure quorums and expect expanded shareholder participation.
KSD is also strengthening support for institutional investors' voting rights exercise. Following the introduction of the Stewardship Code in 2018, demand for voting rights exercise from pension funds and asset management companies has increased, prompting expansion of dedicated services. KSD provides functions for delegation and acceptance of voting rights between discretionary investment managers and pension funds, as well as batch and integrated voting functions. At last year's annual general meetings, 194 institutional investors, including the four major pension funds, used the electronic voting service.
KSD plans to introduce a new integrated voting rights platform combining electronic voting and electronic proxy services in time for the implementation of the electronic shareholder meeting system in 2027. This is expected to enable electronic processing of the entire voting rights exercise process.
Meanwhile, for companies to use the electronic voting service, they must adopt electronic voting through a board resolution before holding the shareholder meeting and designate KSD as the electronic voting management institution. They then need to apply for the service at least 14 days before the meeting date.