Welcome to our annual AGM snapshot!

Each year, our team of experts help organise the most important event in our clients’ corporate calendar – your AGM.

In 2024, MUFG Corporate Markets partnered with our clients to deliver over 630 meetings, across Australia and New Zealand. Having a global footprint provides us an opportunity to gain a greater understanding of the opportunities and challenges issuers are facing across global markets allowing us to share more insights which we have also included.

We are pleased to share our meeting insights from the 2024 AGM season. AGMs traditionally have been a key component of corporate governance, where shareholders are given the opportunity to vote on crucial decisions and engage with the company's management. Over the last few years, AGMs have continued to evolve due to technological advancements, changing regulations, and shifting shareholder expectations. It is evident that the AGM landscape has transformed permanently, with hybrid meetings becoming the preferred format, enabling full engagement from any location.

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors are playing a more prominent role in AGMs. Shareholders are demanding greater transparency on sustainability issues, and many AGMs now feature dedicated sessions or votes on environmental and social policies. Shareholders, particularly institutional investors, are becoming more active in influencing corporate strategies. AGM discussions are increasingly focused on issues such as executive compensation, environmental impact, and corporate social responsibility.

There is also a growing emphasis on proxy voting, with many companies encouraging more shareholder participation. Transparency around how votes are cast and the results are increasingly important in maintaining trust and good governance.

The 2024 AGM season showcased a variety of meetings formats. Many opted for a return to the traditional format with 50% conducting in-person meetings, and a further 35% facilitating hybrid meetings, with majority of these companies sitting within the S&P/ASX 201+, whilst others incorporated technological elements without fully optimising a hybrid model. This blend of approaches is based on the individual needs of each Issuer and balances the benefits of digital engagement with the value of face-to-face interactions.

With 2025 well and truly upon us, we outline the continued importance of engagement with key stakeholders and proxy advisors well in advance of a Company’s AGM. We are immensely grateful to all our clients in Australia, New Zealand and around the globe for trusting us to deliver their AGM, be it in person or utilising our Online Meeting Platform.

You will have seen our name change after the acquisition of Link Group by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corporation (the Trust Bank), a consolidated subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (MUFG).

Our teams within Registry, Fund Services, Employee Share Plans, Investor Relations, Corporate Governance and Communications businesses all now form MUFG Corporate Markets, a division of MUFG Pension & Market Services.

While our name has changed, the team, products and solutions that you know and trust remain the same. MUFG Corporate Markets is your one-stop-shop for all share registry, market data, beneficial ownership analysis, investor relations, websites, proxy solicitation and employee share plan administration in-house.

Feedback is important to us and assists us in continually improving our service offerings and products. If you have anything that you would like to share, please contact me personally, at David.Farr@mpms.mufg.com

I trust this report provides you with valuable insights to assist you in the successful planning of your meetings in 2025.