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More time to shine: 2025 Corporate Governance Awards deadline extended
Governance Intelligence has extended the deadline for submissions for this year’s Corporate Governance Awards Nominees now have until Friday, August 8 to enter their submission for the 18th annual Corporate Governance Awards following an extension of the deadline. A gala ceremony announcing the winners will be held on Thursday, November 6, attended by hundreds of industry professionals from the world of governance, risk and compliance (GRC) in New York City. The commemoration will celebrate excellence in GRC, honoring those who set new standards across the sector. They cover many areas of governance-related activity, including hosting AGMs, compliance programs and ESG…
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The quiet power of the Big Three: a new era of corporate governance
BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street Global Advisors are setting the agenda for companies Bitcoin Depot, a US-based Bitcoin ATM operator and fintech company, has appointed Philip Brown as its new chief compliance officer. In the new role, Brown will oversee Bitcoin Depot’s compliance strategy as the company continues its expansion across the US and internationally. Specifically, Brown will manage the company’s compliance program, including its anti-money laundering and ‘know your customer’ procedures, transaction monitoring and state-by-state compliance strategies. In addition, he will also lead the company’s regulatory engagement plans and ensure that its compliance infrastructure scales alongside its growing footprint.…
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How the SEC’s ‘pendulum swing’ has realigned rules with market realities this proxy season
DE&I, ESG proposals trends and regulatory changes take center stage at Governance Intelligence briefing How is the proxy season evolving? During a recent Governance Intelligence briefing on Lessons from the 2025 Proxy Season – held in partnership withBetaNXT – Amanda Thrash, senior counsel and assistant corporate secretary at The Williams Companies, said that DE&I issues were still of central importance to investors in 2025. ‘You had large institutional investors like State Street and proxy advisors like Glass Lewis both stating that they would vote against or recommend voting against directors on boards in companies that were not 30 percent gender…
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People moves: Philip Brown joins Bitcoin Depot as chief compliance officer as Kroger welcomes new general counsel
Plus Pentair, Air Products and Synopsys all strengthen their governance teams We are witnessing a quiet but seismic shift in corporate governance. Behind the headlines of stock prices and board reshuffles, a powerful trio of asset management giants – BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) – has quietly become the most influential force in the corporate world. Known collectively as the‘Big Three’, these firms are now shaping the strategies, structures and leadership of companies across the globe, all too often in ways that are invisible to the public and even to the businesses they influence. This isn’t just…
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The week in GRC: HPE and Elliott reach boardroom truce as Erica Williams steps down from PCAOB
This week’s governance, compliance and risk-management stories from around the web —Erica Williams, chair of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), is due to step down from the group after being ousted from the role, Reuters (paywall) reported. ‘Today I accepted Erica Williams’ offer to resign as chair and a board member of the PCAOB and thanked her for her service,’ said SEC chair Paul Atkins in a statement. ‘I am grateful she has agreed to stay on until July 22. We look forward to advancing our oversight responsibilities of the PCAOB as it continues its important work.’ It…
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‘It’s ripe for disruption’: How governance teams are harnessing AI for smarter board communications
Panelists discuss how the ‘AI train is leaving the station’ on a recent Governance Intelligence briefing How can your board use AI in a smart and safe way? A recent Governance Intelligence briefing onAI for board communications: The next frontier of governance, held in partnership with Board Intelligence, shed light on what AI innovation means for directors, emphasizing both the opportunities and governance challenges it introduces. Panelists discussed how they are encouraging their boards to embrace AI tools to enhance decision-making, streamline communication and improve efficiency – without compromising oversight, accountability or ethical responsibility. During the session, Seth Gastwirth, deputy…
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People moves: Alumis promotes Sanam Pangali to chief legal officer and IonQ brings in Paul Dacier
Plus Fiera Capital, Cingulate and Aluminium Bahrain bolster their governance teams Alumis, a late-stage biopharma company, has promoted Sanam Pangali to chief legal officer and corporate secretary. Prior to her promotion Pangali served as senior vice president of legal for the Nasdaq-listed company and succeeds Sara Klein, who has retired. In Pangali’s new role, she will oversee all legal and compliance functions including corporate governance, intellectual property, and strategic advisory on key decisions and transactions. Before joining Alumis Pangali held various leadership roles at the likes of ACELYRIN, Snapdocs, Principia Biopharma and Morrison & Foerster, the company says in a…
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Muted mics, loud protests: how the rise of AGM protests is forcing companies to rethink shareholder meetings
High-profile campaigns in UK provoked some firms to shift to online-only Are we witnessing a rise in AGM protests? While often a forum for disagreements with shareholders, this year’s AGM season was characterized by a marked rise in public campaigns targeting annual meetings – particularly in the UK – each of which gained significant press attention. In May, Shell’s 2025 AGM was interrupted by activists from Amnesty International UK, Fossil Free London and campaigners from Justice 4 Nigeriawho staged an ‘oil spill’ protest outside of the energy company’s global headquarters in central London. Earlier that month the Drax Group, owner…
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Beyond the podium: ‘Winning affirmed the value of what I’ve been able to accomplish’
As closing date looms for 2025 entries, we catch up with two of the big winners from the 17th annual Corporate Governance Awards Against the backdrop of the New York city skyline, the 17th annual Corporate Governance Awards bestowed 22 trophies on some of the industry’s key players back in 2024. Commemorated themes included annual general meetings, compliance and ethics programs, ESG reporting, entity management, use of technology, proxy statements, investor engagement and corporate transactions. The top individual prizes of the night, celebrating personal excellence in the world of GRC, went to Christina Lai of Robinhood Markets for governance professional…
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The week in GRC: Tesla sets November date for 2025 AGM amid corporate turmoil
This week’s governance, compliance and risk-management stories from around the web —Telsa is to hold its annual shareholder meeting on November 06, following calls from a group of investors to set one, citing legal obligations, with its proxy statement to be released in the coming weeks. According to Reuters (paywall), Tesla’s last meeting was in June 2024. In April the company said it would file its annual proxy statement later than expected as the board had not decided on a date for the 2025 AGM. The news comes as the electric vehicle (EV) maker has suffered a series of setbacks…