In the scope of the public lecture series “After Work Lectures” of the University of Liechtenstein, Dr. Dominique Biedermann, Executive Director of the Ethos foundation, will deliver a lecture on the topic of active ownership on Thursday, 10 May 2012.
For some years now, a shift has been observed in the shareholder structure of listed companies, in the direction of from owners of capital towards institutional investors with fiduciary responsibility towards owners of capital. As the main speaker at the After Work Lecture, Dr. Dominique Biedermann, Executive Director of the Ethos foundation, will discuss the economic value of shareholder rights and the resulting obligation of institutional investors to actively exercise these rights. In his lecture, he will focus on the targeted exercising of voting rights and the possibilities for constructive dialogue between the general meeting and management, with a view to guiding public limited companies towards an environmentally and socially responsible approach to company management in the interests of good corporate governance. Opportunities to exchange ideas will be provided by a discussion led by Professor Marco Menichetti, who holds the Chair in Business Administration, Banking and Financial Management, and Michael Frommelt, president of the Liechtenstein Society of Investment Professionals, and at the subsequent drinks reception. Questions to the speakers can be submitted in advance up until 8 May to banking@uni.li.
Sustainable and socially responsible investing
The Ethos foundation for sustainable development was created in 1997 by two Geneva-based pension funds and is currently composed of 130 primarily Swiss institutional investors. The purpose of the foundation is to promote the consideration of social, environmental and governance issues in investment decisions. Ethos caused public controversy when it refused to grant discharge to the management bodies of UBS for the years 2007 to 2009, having held former managers jointly responsible for the financial crisis. Executive Director Dominique Biedermann received his PhD in Economics from the University of Geneva in 1989. His doctoral thesis focused on the behaviour of real interest rates in an international environment of flexible exchange rates. He is a visiting professor for the Master’s degree programme for “Ethics and Political Economy” at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, and is also regularly invited to give lectures on corporate governance and sustainable investment in Geneva and Zug.
Dr. Dominique Biedermann, Executive Director of the Ethos foundation for sustainable development, will speak about active ownership at the University of Liechtenstein on 10 May.
The series of After Work Lectures is the result of a collaboration between the University of Liechtenstein and the Liechtenstein Society of Investment Professionals.
After Work Lecture: Active Ownership
Lecture and discussion held in English
Lecture room 1 of the University of Liechtenstein, Vaduz
Thursday, 10 May 2012, 5.30 p.m. to 7.00 p.m.
Free entry; registration deadline: 8 May 2012
Information: banking@uni.li; registration: http://www.uni.li/tabid/396/id/33155.67/Default.aspx