NYSE Euronext Commission Head Warns On Corp-Governance Reforms
19 Novembre 2009 - 9:29PM
Dow Jones News
The U.S. should be careful not to restrict risk-taking and
capital-market access with proposed corporate-governance reforms,
according to the head of a new commission backed by NYSE Euronext
(NYX) and some of the nation's largest companies.
Outrage over executive pay and risk-management issues laid bare
by the financial crisis must be addressed, but new rules can't make
it harder for executives to make decisions and shouldn't bog down
board operations, according to Larry W. Sonsini, chairman of NYSE
Euronext's Commission on Corporate Governance.
"I fear if we over-regulate risk, we will over-stagnate growth,"
said Sonsini, also chairman of law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich
& Rosati.
"Right now the concern is, let's not burden corporate America
with overregulation on governance principles and lose sight of the
effectiveness and competitiveness we need for our companies on a
global basis," Sonsini said in an interview. "Let's be sure that
through this regulation we're not burdening the liquidity and
transparency of our capital markets."
NYSE Euronext is fielding the group, which includes executives
of Exxon-Mobil Corp. (XOM), International Business Machines Corp.
(IBM), General Electric Co. (GE) and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS)
alongside pension-fund officials and legal experts.
The commission will add its voice to a debate that has gathered
momentum in Washington and boardrooms around the country as
investors seek to hold executives and boards of directors
accountable for actions that, at worst, fed into the economic
meltdown, or at best, look irresponsible in retrospect.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is taking aim at a
variety of corporate-governance issues, and earlier this month
lawmakers moved to expand the regulator's say in how board
elections are carried out.
In an interview, Sonsini said that the intense focus on
executive compensation will bring more transparency and increased
efforts to tie pay to company performance, but shareholders' recent
efforts to gain a direct say in how much senior executives get paid
is "something we need to look at."
Stockholders of networking company Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO)
last week approved such a resolution, which will let them vote on
executive pay every year, following similar measures taken at Apple
Inc. (AAPL) and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT).
Such proposals have been pushed by activist shareholders--often
big fund companies seeking changes in company policy or board
makeup--which Sonsini said have also altered the way board
elections are conducted, with many companies adopting majority
voting for directors.
"What's happening in governance is that there's a meshing, so to
speak, of stockholders and directors, and roles are starting to
clash," he said. "The approach I have in mind is getting back to
fundamental principles."
Advocates for corporate-governance reform have also called for
board committees dedicated to risk management, another idea the
NYSE Euronext commission will examine, according to Sonsini.
The commission may eventually issue recommendations to NYSE
Euronext, which carries corporate-governance requirements in its
listing rules. It is possible the commission also would share its
findings with the SEC.
-By Jacob Bunge, Dow Jones Newswires; (312) 750 4117;
jacob.bunge@dowjones.com
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