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Railpen's Response on European Parliament and of the Council on multiple-vote share structures
As a responsible investor, we recognise our duty to act as an engaged steward of our assets. We thoughtfully and intelligently exercise our voting rights – alongside constructive engagement with portfolio companies – to support the Trustee’s objective of enhancing the long-term investment return for its beneficiaries.
Differential voting rights dilute the ability of independent shareholders – including Railpen and
others in the responsible investment community with a long-term perspective – to effectively
hold companies to account. We believe it is a fundamental tenet for any financial market or
system which seeks to promote long-term corporate success that shareholder voting rights are
directly linked to the shareholder’s economic stake. We therefore believe that any steps to
further enable multiple-vote share structures (MVSS) would run counter to the rest of the
European Commission’s laudable and very welcome work to support investors as effective
stewards of their assets.
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