‘Skin in the game’ disclosure demand
Interactive Investor, the direct-to-consumer investment platform, has called for fund managers to be forced to disclose whether they invest in the funds that they manage. It has written to the Financial Conduct Authority and the Financial Services Consumer Panel, calling for measures to be brought in similar to those in the USA to increase transparency regarding ‘skin in the game’.
Investment companies have long disclosed share dealing by directors but when rules were brought in requiring PDMRs (persons discharging managerial responsibilities) to disclose their share dealing most people I talked to expected that to apply to fund managers. Somehow, it doesn’t.
The definition of a PDMR is:
- A member of the administrative, management, or supervisory body of the issuer; or
- A senior executive who is not a member of those bodies, who has regular access to inside information relating directly or indirectly to that entity and power to take managerial decisions affecting the future developments and business prospects of that entity.
The proposal makes a lot of sense to me – it is a common question on the weekly shows. It is interesting to see Interactive Investor getting involved in this – I wonder whether this marks the start of further campaigns for shareholder rights.