Sebi asks mutual fund houses to provide voting rationale

Criteria on various disclosure requirements for AMCs tightened

Mutual fund houses will now have to give a reasoning while they cast their votes on resolutions by their investee companies. Earlier, fund houses or asset management companies (AMCs) were required to only publish a summary of their voting.

“AMCs shall be required to record and disclose specific rationale supporting their voting decision (for, against or abstain) with respect to each vote proposal,” said Sebi in a circular.

The regulator has also asked fund houses to provide for a break-up for total number of votes cast in favour, against or abstained from.

Also, besides disclosing voting details in their annual report, AMCs will have to make a disclosure of votes cast on their website on a quarterly basis, within 10 working days from the end of the quarter.

Sebi has also asked AMCs to obtain auditor’s certification on the voting reports being disclosed by them.

Reporting of voting decisions was made mandatory by Sebi since 2010.

An analysis done by proxy advisory firm InGovern, showed that AMCs had voted against just 1,5 per cent resolutions of investee companies and had abstained from voting in over 50 per cent of resolutions for the year 2012-13.