eToro launches proxy voting through a partnership with Broadridge

eToro has partnered with Broadridge Financial Solutions to launch proxy voting for users on the retail trading platform. The brokerage platform will gather all votes from investors and aggregate them before sharing them with firms.

eToro launches proxy voting

The partnership will allow users of the eToro exchange holding company shares to participate in the annual general meetings through proxy voting. Users can also vote on other decisions like mergers, executive pay, environmental decisions, social and governance.

The broker will support proxy voting for stocks listed in the US before extending the feature for the shares listed on other cryptocurrency exchanges. The co-founder and CEO of eToro, Yoni Assia, said that the number of retail investors had increased, and these investors could influence the financial markets.

“Thanks to our partnership with Broadridge, eToro’s users can now have their say in corporate decision-making at many of the biggest companies in the world. This is a huge milestone in the retail investor story and one that could have a lasting impact on the business world,” Assia added.

The feature was launched a few weeks after the eToro exchange completed the acquisition of BullSheet. The latter is a platform offering portfolio management tools to eToro users to boost the user experience.

Attracting a new breed of investors

The proxy voting feature has been launched to attract new investors. According to a survey conducted among 10,000 retail investors, 73% showed interest in AGM voting. Young investors were also inclined to participate in decision-making.

The survey also found that most retail investors were interested in making decisions about dividends, executive pay, and environmental issues. Assia noted that retail investors were never given a chance, and the launch of proxy voting was a strategic step. Moreover, retail investors were interested in being part of AGMs.

Broadridge has been expanding its global operations significantly to move towards custody and support local agents based in Switzerland. The company’s revenues in Q4 2022 increased 12% to $1.7 billion, with an operating income of $342 million.

While addressing the partnership, the President of Bank Broker-Dealer Investor Communications Solutions at Broadridge said that the company would be supporting eToro and the company in corporate governance. This would be achieved through proxy voting solutions while supporting clients using a new service proposition.