|
"I
don't see a fundamental change in the way we interface with
companies and investors," said Cristiano Guerra, who weighs in
on some of America's most hotly contested mergers and proxy
fights as head of special situations research at ISS.
Two months ago ISS reactivated its lawsuit against the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission after it crafted a new rule
that will require proxy advisers to provide a copy of their
reports to corporations at the same time they release them to
clients. They will also have to inform clients if corporations
plan to rebut their reports.
Proxy advisers and regulators have faced off for months as
corporations have long argued that ISS and its main rival, Glass
Lewis & Co, have too much power in guiding investors on
hot-button issues like executive pay and should be more
transparent in their recommendations.
"The efforts to silence ISS is a proxy for silencing
shareholders," Guerra said at the 13D Monitor Conference on
Thursday. He said it would be professional suicide if he favored
the views of a specific investor client over another investor
client in matters that ISS recommends on. "I trust my team, I
trust our analysis and I'm very comfortable with our track
record," he said.
Guerra also said the pandemic has forced his team to alter work
habits and conduct all business through phone calls rather than
in person. He said he does not permit video meetings because
Zoom calls can become too distracting with a large number of
participants.
(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss in Boston; Editing by Matthew
Lewis)
[© 2020 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2020 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
