L&G is holding investee companies to account. Others should take note

The bad behaviour of some corporations during the coronavirus outbreak has emphasised the need for big investors to act when executives make crass decisions, writes James Moore

The coronavirus has put a spotlight on corporate behaviour (AFP)

Were companies behaving worse than ever prior to the coronavirus outbreak (when some of them have frankly excelled themselves with their awfulness)?

That’s an interpretation you could put on Legal and General Investment Management (LGIM) voting against the election of more than 4,000 company directors and steaming in against 35 per cent of executive pay packages globally, as detailed by its ninth annual “Active Ownership” report that was published on Wednesday morning.

However, the governance team at the fund manager told me that interpretation is incorrect