Aston Law School corporate governance experts launch new book on investor stewardship

• Dr Daniel Cash and Robert Goddard co-wrote Investor Stewardship and the UK Stewardship Code: The Role of Institutional Investors in Corporate Governance
• The book will be relevant for an international audience of academics, regulators and policymakers in financial regulation, investment regulation and financial services
• It coincides with the publishing of the Stewardship Code 2020 signatories as part of a new regulatory code by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC)

Two members of Aston Law School have released a new book around investor stewardship to coincide with a major milestone by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC).

The FRC published the first main list of Stewardship Code 2020 signatories on 6 September 2021, after a round of reporting earlier this year. This milestone details who is following the Code and allows the regulator to focus on holding signatories to the articulated standards of stewardship and how it is reported.

The new book by Dr Daniel Cash and Robert Goddard, Investor Stewardship and the UK Stewardship Code: The Role of Institutional Investors in Corporate Governance, provides a critical assessment of the development of the Stewardship Code 2020, which sets out principles regarding the role of institutional investors in corporate governance.

It discusses how the regulatory framework for stewardship evolved before and after the financial crisis, and how that evolution resulted in the 2020 Code. It also critiques the Code from a practical and academic perspective, as well as evaluating the wider regulatory framework; in particular, the position of the FRC merging into the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA).

Dr Daniel Cash, senior lecturer in law at Aston Law School, said:

“The Stewardship Code is a big deal in British governance, and that is exactly what the book looks at.

“It examines the history of the stewardship Codes and regulation in the UK, and uses this to critically examine the new 2020 Code.

“That critical analysis leads into projections of how the Code may fare in the modern business environment, aspects that may affect its progression, and puts forward elements that can make the Code’s impact more substantial.

“This important regulatory development will play a massive role in aligning the actions of investors with the wider societal needs in the new world being dominated by ESG concerns.

“Stewardship Codes modelled on the UK’s original 2010 version have been introduced in numerous markets and, as such, the book will be relevant for an international audience of academics, regulators and policymakers in financial regulation, investment regulation and financial services.”

You can buy a copy of Investor Stewardship and the UK Stewardship Code: The Role of Institutional Investors in Corporate Governance here.