Corporate actions

Will MeDirect always have the same default election as the company registrar?

The company’s registrar will often set a default election option for security holders to be used when no reply is received. MeDirect will tend to use the same default option, however, there may be some occasions when MeDirect will set a different default option. MeDirec will always advise the default option on our corporate action notifications.

What is the difference between a mandatory and a voluntary corporate action?

A mandatory event does not require any investment decision from you, it is simply for your information. An example of a mandatory event would be a spin-off, where part of a company is spun-off to create a new company. If you have shares in the original company, you will receive shares of the new company whilst retaining your original investment. A voluntary event invites you to take part in an offer, but you may also decline to take part, in which case the default option will apply. Usually, the default option for a voluntary event is to ‘take no action’. A tender offer is an example of a voluntary event, where a third party wants to buy a portion of equity in your invested company, you will have the option to tender all or part of your investment. The event could eventually become a mandatory takeover where the third party attempts to buy the entire share capital leaving you without the choice to tender or not.

What do I need to do if I hold a securities investment which is undergoing a corporate action?

You should await contact from us. You will receive a secure message in your online secure inbox for any corporate actions that require your attention. You may be required to make a decision for certain corporate actions. If this is the case, we will indicate which options are available. Your instruction must be delivered by return secure message. We will also confirm the date by which your response must be received on our corporate action notification.