1. ISS is finally leashed: SEC Amends Rules for Proxy Advisors On July 22, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted amendments to better regulate the activities of proxy advisors, such as ISS and Glass Lewis, and to ensure that clients of proxy voting advice businesses have reasonable and timely access to more transparent, […]

Act I: In July 2012, the American corporation, Lowe’s, makes some noise about acquiring RONA, the Quebec-based chain of hardware stores. Coming on the eve of an election campaign in Quebec, the prospect of a foreign acquisition of a “strategic” Quebec company generates strong reactions and a sort of political consensus: “The Quebec government must […]

Dual-class shares have become one of the most controversial issues in today´s capital markets and corporate governance debates around the world. Namely, it is not clear whether companies should be allowed to go public with dual-class shares and, if so, which restrictions (if any) should be imposed. Three primary regulatory models have been adopted to […]

Yvan Allaire, executive chair at the Institute for Governance of Private and Public Organizations, joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss “quarterly capitalism” in light of WestJet CEO Ed Sims’ warning on the destruction it brings to long-term company plans. To watch this interview, please click here.  

CPPIB is backing a proposal to end Bombardier Inc.’s dual class share structure and remove the control of the founding family, forcing the company onto the defensive as it hosts investors for its annual meeting Thursday. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, which oversees assets worth about $368-billion and is one of Bombardier’s 25 biggest shareholders, […]

For many family businesses, control of long-term direction and management of the family corporation are key issues, particularly during times of growth or periods of succession. The Institute for Governance of Private and Public Organizations (“IGOPP”) recently published a new policy paper that should be of interest to family businesses and their advisors in planning the capital […]

Investor-rights group Médac acknowledges its bid to end Bombardier Inc.’s dual-class share system is destined to fail, but says it has no better option to trigger a discussion on what it sees as a critical issue. The Montreal-based organization is calling for changes to the laws governing Canadian companies that give extra voting rights to […]

[ … ] The Quebec government has set aside $1-billion to encourage strategically important businesses to keep their head offices in the province, a measure Finance Minister Eric Girard says he could use to protect the Montreal executive suites of SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. Mr. Girard announced the measure Thursday in his Coalition Avenir Québec government’s […]

American fund managers are freaking out about the popularity of multiple voting shares among entrepreneurs going for an initial public offering (IPO). In recent years, some 20 per cent of American IPOs (and up to a third among tech entrepreneurs) have adopted a dual-class structure. Fund managers are working overtime to squelch this trend. In […]

Allaire, Yvan, The Case for Dual-Class of Shares (December 20, 2018). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3318447 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3318447 The debate over whether dual class of shares increases or decreases share value, should be prohibited or not, should be subjected to mandatory sunset provisions, and so on has been heating up over the last few years. This paper reviews the […]

Dual-class share structures have drawn the ire of some investors, citing concerns with shareholder rights. For more on this and why he thinks there’s a place for dual-class shares, BNN Bloomberg spoke with Yvan Allaire, executive chair at the Institute for Governance of Private and Public Organizations. To view the interview, please click here

Montreal (February 4, 2019) — In Canada, the number of companies with multiple voting shares has dropped from 100 in 2005 to 69 in 2018. But these companies continue to play a vital role in the Canadian economy. The Institute for Governance has issued a policy paper in support of multiple voting shares, urging entrepreneurs […]

I would like to make two points in response to Professor Coffee’s piece on dual class common stock. First, American dual class companies should be obliged to include a “coattail” provision, as is the case in Canada. This provision, imposed since 1987 by the Toronto Stock Exchange, ensures the controlling shareholder cannot sell control without all shareholders […]

There are now 69 dual-class companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, down from 100 in 2005. Only 23 Canadian companies went public since 2005 with a dual-class of shares while 16 of the 100 have since converted to a single-class and another 38 have disappeared since 2006 for other reasons (acquisitions, mergers, bankruptcies and […]

[ … ] Following an examination of Canadian industrial companies, Allaire (2016) suggested that financial performances of these Canadian DCS companies would outperform the peers over 5-, 10-, and 15-year periods (see Exhibit 1). Allaire considered that the superior financial performance would help these firms maintain their headquarters in Canada and argued that such share structures […]