State Street Global Advisors to Launch New Company Board-Aligned Voting Policy

By: State Street Corporation via Business Wire

November 29, 2023 at 07:00 AM EST

Expands voter choice as program goes live for US ETF and mutual fund investors

State Street Global Advisors, the asset management business of State Street Corporation (NYSE: STT), today announced it will offer investors a new company board-aligned voting policy option to further expand investor choice.

The Vote with Company Board Recommendation Policy option, which will be the most widely available of its kind in the industry, allows shareholders in US equity index ETFs and mutual funds managed by State Street Global Advisors to strictly align the voting of their shares with the proxy voting recommendations of the boards of directors of the portfolio companies in which those funds are invested.

Additional details and information on the proxy voting policies that will be offered to investors as part of this program can be found on the State Street Global Advisors website.

“As pioneers in the ETF and mutual fund industry, we are proud to launch another meaningful enhancement that expands how investors can express their views,” said Yie-Hsin Hung, CEO of State Street Global Advisors. “This new option, which will vote in line with a board’s recommendation, is proof of our commitment to expand proxy voting choices for our clients.”

In May, State Street Global Advisors announced the expansion of its proxy voting choice offering to include investors that own its US equity index ETFs and mutual funds. The program will now go live this month and expand investor voting choice to all investors in equity index US SPDR ETFs and equity index US SSGA Mutual Funds that invest in US public equities, and will cover more than 80% of eligible index equity assets, including all US institutional equity index funds.

“We believe in providing choice – both in the products we offer to our clients and in the investor voting choice program that we continue to expand on,” said Lori Heinel, global chief investment officer at State Street Global Advisors. “For investors who believe that management and boards generally act in the best interests of shareholders, this proxy voting option aligns well with that view.”

Similar to separately-managed accounts, shareholders of all our funds that are eligible for the program can continue to delegate their votes to the State Street Global Advisors Asset Stewardship team by choosing not to opt in to the firm’s proxy voting program and have State Street Global Advisors continue to vote the shares held by the funds in which they are invested.

About State Street Global Advisors

For four decades, State Street Global Advisors has served the world’s governments, institutions and financial advisors. With a rigorous, risk-aware approach built on research, analysis and market-tested experience, we build from a breadth of index and active strategies to create cost-effective solutions. And, as pioneers in index, ETF, and ESG investing, we are always inventing new ways to invest. As a result, we have become the world’s fourth largest asset manager* with US $3.69 trillion† under our care.

*Pensions & Investments Research Center, as of 12/31/22.

†This figure is presented as of September 30, 2023 and includes approximately $58.13 billion USD of assets with respect to SPDR products for which State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, LLC (SSGA FD) acts solely as the marketing agent. SSGA FD and State Street Global Advisors are affiliated. Please note all AUM is unaudited.

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