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A Tale of Two Investment Trusts

The views expressed in this article are those of its author and not necessarily those of ShareSoc. Salutary Lessons for Directors and Shareholders of Trusts Investing in Alternative Assets  Usually, the role of non-executive director at an investment trust is a bit of a sinecure. Most investment trusts invest in stocks and bonds. Their portfolios are easy to value and there is little scope for misdeeds. Most such trusts publish their NAVs daily. The principal role for NEDs of such trusts is to ...

Widening retail participation in European equity markets

This article reflects the opinions of its author and not necessarily those of ShareSoc. A thematic summary of a recent event hosted by New Financial Retail participation in equity markets  Investing in public equity markets can be a great way for individuals to improve their long-term financial security. It can also help to democratize wealth creation, connect issuers to their owners, and connect the financial services industry with the people it exists to serve.  However, retail engagement in equity markets and retail investment has fallen ...

People want to attend AGMs in person, so we need to find a balance

This article reflects the opinions of its author, Cliff Weight, and not necessarily those of ShareSoc. We need to kickstart a system of connections for shareholders in our digital age Archie Norman’s opinion piece in the FT 14 July “The bond between British business and society has eroded -We need to kickstart a system of connections for shareholders in our digital age” (subscription required) has clarified his clarion call to modernise the Companies Act. This year, M&S experimented with a digital-only AGM and Archie recognises ...

BP Shareholder Meeting 19 April 2023 – Report

This article reflects the opinions of its author and not necessarily those of ShareSoc. I attended the BP shareholder meeting on 19 April, held at the BP Head Office 1 St James’s Square, along with about 60 - 70 other shareholders. The meeting was organised by UKSA and ShareSoc members were also invited to attend.   The case for investing in BP shares is clear. They plan to grow ROACE to 18% with careful and limited capex split 50/50 between transition (green) energy ...

Home REIT – A Personal Viewpoint

This article reflects the opinions of its author and not necessarily those of ShareSoc. Initial Period  Home REIT (HOME) appeared to offer rather an attractive proposition. It was intended to purchase residential properties and lease them at affordable rents to charities and public bodies (“the tenants”) providing accommodation for the homeless. The rent was supposed to be covered by housing benefits paid directly to the tenants, i.e. fully government backed. Rental income was expected to be sufficient to support a dividend of at ...