Osakkeenomistajien päätösehdotukset suomalaisten pörssiyhtiöiden yhtiökokouksissa

The research has examined shareholder proposals in Finnish listed companies
in the years 2017–2021. Proposals are mainly made by groups of shareholders,
but also by individual shareholders such as small investors. The reason behind
the increase in the number of proposals during the review period is the increase
in shareholders’ nomination committees. The proposals especially concern the
election rights belonging to the general meeting. Based on the analysis, there
is often a controlling shareholder with substantial ownership in shares in listed
companies. The share of votes clearly below the majority limit is still enough to
form a controlling position. Based on the evidence, shareholders are also able to
influence decision-making without a controlling position. Despite the universal
nature of the right to propose resolutions and its low transaction costs, shareholder activism based on its use was only slightly detectable in the material. Most
proposals are accepted without a vote and there are hardly any counterproposals,
which means that the controlling owners have a robust position, regardless of
their share of ownership, which is rarely challenged. No abuse of the right to
submit shareholder proposals was detected.