Digital divide

2 April 2020 By John Foley Follow @johnsfoley

Virtual gatherings are all the rage. Covid-19 is one reason, but another is that boards get more control over the agenda. Capitalism will be poorer without awkward questions and activists dressed as cleaners. Any chance to challenge cozy directors ought to be cherished.

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Companies including Amazon.com and Boeing have decided to hold their annual shareholder meetings online as a response to the spread of the novel coronavirus. Starbucks held its shareholder meeting online on March 18.

Broadridge Financial Solutions, a U.S.-listed company that facilitates shareholder events for companies, hosted 326 virtual meetings in 2019, including 38 companies from the S&P 500 Index, and expects to run three or four times as many in 2020.

Delaware, where most big U.S. companies are incorporated, allows virtual-only shareholder meetings, but around 20 states do not. New York, New Jersey and Connecticut have recently passed emergency motions temporarily allowing them.

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