Evolving market and regulatory framework are key pillars to increased engagement

The last few years have witnessed an increased focus on the retail shareholder within Europe, including as part of the European Union’s ambitious plans for growth.

Key takeaways include:

• The EU regulatory community has placed increasing the participation rates of retail shareholders at the heart of its strategic plan to increase the appeal of the region’s markets and foster growth.
• The establishment of a harmonised definition of a shareholder and the mandating of harmonised formats in areas such as power of attorney documentation, which are part of the Shareholder Rights Directive (SRD II) Review proposals, will create a more level playing field for individual retail investors to access proxy voting services in every country.
• The gradually evolving regulatory framework in Europe to support both environmental, social and governance (ESG) and shareholder voting will likely encourage even more activity in the long term.
• The hybrid working environment has increased global retail investment activity and engagement and will continue to do so in the future.
• The next generation of retail investors have vastly different expectations for the user experience and they also have a significant interest in responsible finance and ESG.

Understand how ongoing reviews of the CMU and SRD II, combined with a wider adoption of modern technology, a greater emphasis on user experience and a shift in the priorities of traditional and next-generation retail investors, are shaping the market and further engaging the retail segment.