RE: Reject offer24 May 2021 13:38
Voting
How do you get to vote if your shares are in a nominee account? First bear in mind that if you are holding shares in a nominee account, only your stockbroker can in theory vote those shares (because it is their name on the register).
However, there are three ways that in practise enable you to exercise a vote, and the first two involve getting the voting rights assigned to you. These are:
1. By the broker appointing you as their proxy for the number of shares for which you are the beneficial owner. Such a proxy will normally enable you to attend the Meeting also, and would need to be lodged with the registrar a few days before the relevant Meeting (and a copy supplied to you which you can present if you attend the Meeting).
2. By obtaining a “letter of representation” from the broker in respect of the number of shares for which you are the beneficial owner. This is equivalent in some ways to a proxy appointment. This also will enable you to attend the Meeting and vote as if you were the owner of the shares at that Meeting (if a poll is called or on a “show of hands” vote).
The third way to vote is via a mechanism that some brokers have introduced where you can notify them how you wish to vote and they will submit a proxy form to the company (instructing the Chairman how to vote on their behalf). You will of course realise that the broker might get conflicting instructions from their various clients, but this can now be handled because the broker can vote so many shares “for” a resolution and so many shares “against” (i.e. they can split their total votes depending on the number of “instructions” they receive, ignoring the votes where they receive no instructions). But you will still need a separate “letter of representation” or a copy of the proxy form if you wish to attend a Meeting in person.
Only a few brokers offer this voting facility on an automatic basis at present (along with information provision also because unless you receive the documents issued by the company you may not know how to vote) – the ones we know of are Brewin Dolphin, Killik & Co., Natwest Stockbrokers, TD Waterhouse and The Share Centre.
If none of the above mechanisms are used, then your broker may simply not vote your shares (or in some cases they might even make their own minds up on how to vote).
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