Consideration of a More Measured Approach for Smaller Public Companies
On December 1, 2020, Nasdaq filed Proposed Rule 5605(f) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) to adopt new listing rules related to board diversity. If approved by the SEC, Proposed Rule 5605(f) would require all companies listed on Nasdaq’s U.S. exchange to publicly disclose their diversity statistics regarding their board of directors. Proposed Rule 5605(f) would also require all Nasdaq-listed companies to include a minimum number of individuals on their board of directors who self-identify in one or more of the following “Diverse” categories: female, underrepresented minority or LGBTQ+.
Following withdrawal of its prior proposal to the SEC, the NYSE again seeks to ease certain listing standards for SPACs, which have seen a resurgence in recent years.
Despite the withdrawal of their proposals to the SEC, the Exchanges continue to see healthy gains by SPACs and their sponsors.
Important considerations for the upcoming proxy season.
Nasdaq is now conducting a survey among market participants for a new rule that could prohibit directors receiving third party payments from being considered independent.