Politicians, it is now your turn to act!
- Evelyne van Wassenhove
- Mar 28, 2024
- 1 min read
After more than five years of struggle by a group of minority shareholders against Trafigura's takeover of Nyrstar, and with the facts now clearly established, the main players continue to hide behind silence and legal battles. This is a pattern we see in many other cases where legal proceedings are initiated.
It is time for our decision-makers to recognize that our rule of law does not offer sufficient protection against what is known as “cuckoo capitalism.”
For example, the United States acts much more forcefully against parties that circumvent the rules, with extensive powers for the SEC, including the imposition of severe penalties.
This approach is effective: we have just learned that Trafigura has pleaded guilty in Miami to corruption in Brazil and paid a fine of $126 million (Source: De Tijd, March 28, 2024).
Isn't it high time that we also strengthened our rules to create a level playing field between reference shareholders and minority shareholders, and to strengthen enforcement and sanctions?
That is why we have drawn up a policy document containing concrete recommendations, which we have submitted to our leading politicians and decision-makers.
Several of them have already indicated that they will take this seriously when drawing up their policy plans and implementing their programs.
The ball is now in your court, politicians. It is in the public interest and necessary to restore the confidence of citizens and investors in the proper functioning of our justice system and capital markets.
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