Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), the financial regulator, has published Recommendation No. 2011-06 on proxy advisory firms: see here (in English, pdf). The purpose of the Recommendation is to secure greater transparency with regard to the operation and role of proxy advisors. To quote from the Recommendation (paras. 7 and 8):The AMF acknowledges the important role of proxy advisors, the structure of their market and the fact that the services they provide and the recommendations they issue are part of a contractual relationship with their customer. However, it appears that the voting recommendations issued by one or more such firms can have an impact on the passing of certain resolutions at General Meetings. This is why the AMF considers it necessary to ensure that this profession is exercised under transparent conditions, by firms that provide high-quality work.
As the authority responsible for monitoring the quality of information provided to investors, the AMF has established this recommendation for proxy advisors. The recommendation addresses the issues of establishing and implementing voting policies, issuing voting recommendations, communicating with listed companies, and preventing conflicts of interest. The AMF encourages the relevant parties to make their best efforts to implement this recommendation starting in 2011 and to mention this compliance on their website, and in any event, recommends implementing these provisions for the 2012 general meetings season. The AMF also requests that proxy advisors submit a progress report on their implementation of this recommendation".
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