Shareholder meetings remain heavily concentrated despite efforts to spread dates

An annual shareholder meeting of Korea Zinc, a KOSPI-listed company, is held at a hotel in Seoul’s Yongsan District, March 28. Yonhap

Shareholder meetings of more than 90 percent of listed companies in Korea still heavily overlap, despite a government-led campaign to spread the dates and encourage greater participation, according to a report released Monday.

The report, authored by Korea Capital Market Institute researcher Hwang Hyun-young, found that 96.4 percent of the 2,583 companies with December fiscal year-ends held their meetings between March 20 and 31 this year.

Notably, over 60 percent of these meetings occurred on just three working days — March 26, 28 and 31.

The findings come as financial authorities have urged companies to disperse meeting dates to give shareholders more time to participate in decision-making.

To this end, authorities have implemented policies such as offering incentives to promote dispersion and operating voluntary compliance programs.

“Even with these initiatives, the concentration of shareholder meetings at the end of March persists, casting doubt on the effectiveness of the measures,” Hwang said.

She compared the situation with the United States, where 74 of the 100 largest companies by market value have December fiscal year-ends, yet their shareholder meetings are spread throughout the year.

The report also highlighted that shareholders in Korea have one of the shortest periods among OECD countries to review proposals.

Notices can be sent just two weeks in advance, and key documents such as business and auditor reports are only disclosed one week before the meeting, limiting shareholders’ ability to make informed decisions.

“It can negatively affect shareholders’ ability to carefully consider proposals and the validity of their decision-making,” Hwang noted.

She suggested setting dividend record dates after shareholder meetings and overhauling the approval process for executive compensation. “These measures can empower shareholders to fully exercise their rights," she said.

Hwang emphasized that such reforms are vital to enhance trust in corporate governance and help eliminate the so-called “Korea discount,” which refers to the longstanding undervaluation of Korean stocks despite a recent domestic bull market.

Meanwhile, the Financial Services Commission, Financial Supervisory Service and Korea Exchange said they will consider the dispersion of shareholder meetings when evaluating disclosure practices and also when reducing penalties for incomplete disclosures.

They also said standard rules will be revised so firms can set a separate record date for voting rights, instead of automatically using the fiscal year-end.