Its position is in one sentence the AMF view

Des marchés financiers (AMF) authority confirmed Friday its willingness to ensure a greater role in the delicate area of corporate governance. In a release, Constable of the Paris stock exchange is is explicitly interfered in the General Assembly, scheduled today, the producer and distributor beverage Belvedere, inscribed on Eurolist C. Its position is in one sentence: "the AMF view ...". that, due to the situation of conflict of interests in which are shareholders also carrying bills of subscription of shares, or BSA, Editor's note, concerned shareholders should refrain from voting at the General Assembly.

This application is a unprecedented intervention by the regulator in the bodies of a listed company governance. It is based on a letter sent to the AMF on January 20 last by Colette Neuville, President of the Association for the defence of minority shareholders (Adam). In her letter, she insisted on the lack of information related to the functions of BSA's viewpoint, in particular as to the identity of their holders. As a result, the patron saint of the Adam required that carriers of bills are identified and cannot vote in the next general meeting of the group.

"Greater transparency".

According to the association, the two leaders of viewpoint and their families control 40 of the BSA. The same individuals control more than half of the capital if one adds the autocontôle shares held by Belvedere, which account for 26 of the capital. Additional embarrassing fact: the exercise of the entirety of the BSA would increase by 64 the current capital of Belvedere, based on data provided by the company itself.

On its side, the distributor of wines and spirits indicated last week by release that these operations "have been published with greater transparency. His direction adds: "concerning the right to vote vouchers redeemable stock, NLDR BSAR carriers, no text of law provides deprivation of the right to vote of carrying BSAR shareholders at a general meeting of shareholders." Arguments which do not persuade AMF, for whom Belvedere "provides all the information necessary for a vote in an informed" and must, as a result, access to applications for Colette Neuville.

Target criticism at the scandals connected, inter alia, on the compensation of some company bosses, the MFA tries for some time to regain control in the field of governance. Its President, Jean-Pierre Jouyet, has made its priority in a speech last week. "The financial markets authority is prepared to exercise new responsibilities in the matter if Governments so wish", was launched, regretting the lack of precision codes enacted by the Afep-Medef employers organisations, which he refuses to be the "notary". In a recent interview with the "echoes", the pattern of the Authority noted that, "more that ever, the AMF must use all his powers to strengthen the protection of savers, expand its supervision of markets, including derivatives and, of course, promote a good corporate governance".

The position taken from Belvedere, firm reached a market capitalization of approximately EUR 90 million, is a first realization of this commitment. It now remains to be seen if the regulator can demonstrate the same intervention for larger groups.