Extending their joint strategic commitment to modernize and enhance shareholder voting in the French market, Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: BR) and SLIB, a software editor for electronic voting and securities services based in France, announced “the go-live of their joint end-to-end global voting solution.”
Demi Derem, General Manager of Broadridge‘s International Investor Communication Solutions, said:
“Broadridge remains firmly committed to enabling greater levels of shareholder engagement across markets globally. Together with our partners at SLIB, we have delivered an advanced voting and communications solution that makes it easier than ever for all investors, both those in France and in other markets, to seamlessly cast their votes in the companies they own.”
The announcement represents “a significant addition to the cross-border proxy voting service for France-based investors that hold international shares, launched by Broadridge and SLIB in December 2021.”
Firms using the solution will “benefit from a highly efficient, streamlined process throughout the vote processing lifecycle – from the capture and distribution of golden copy issuer meeting announcements to vote execution and confirmation of votes cast.”
This highly automated, digital approach “reduces exposure to operational and regulatory risk.”
Philippe Cognet, CEO of SLIB, remarked:
“In order to attract foreign investment, and in response to regulatory pressures and the requirement for robust ESG policies, there is a foundational need to demonstrate strong corporate governance practices through the provision of efficient vote communications. With Broadridge, the leading global proxy voting provider, as our strategic partner, we can now offer intermediaries a comprehensive and efficient ecosystem, that combines support for international investors in French listed companies, and for French investors in foreign companies.”
As noted in the update, SLIB is the software vendor “in register management & electronic voting, risk and post-trade markets.”
SLIB supports “the evolution of the securities market in France and abroad, by envisioning and releasing innovative software solutions enabling financial institution to streamline their processes, while mastering the risks associated to their activities.”
SLIB is also Votaccess Operator, “the cornerstone of Electronic Voting for Paris Stockexchange issuers and Account Keepers, delivering General Meetings notifications and collecting Digital Votes.”
Furthermore, as innovation “is of paramount importance and to underpin any new software initiative SLIB relies on The LAB aiming to be SLIB spearhead in cutting edge technologies such as Blockchain and AI.”
