MARKET MECHANICS

GUIDE
TITLE

January 2024

This Market Mechanics Guide has been created for the use of our clients to better understand the
markets that are covered by the Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) governance research team, voting
agents and Global Proxy Distribution service. This information should be used as an additional resource
along with the meeting-specific information available at the meeting and ballot level of the
ProxyExchange voting platform.

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MARKET MECHANICS GUIDE
January 2024

TABLE OF CONTENTS
MARKET MECHANICS OVERVIEW ................................................................................................................. 3
SHARE-BLOCKING REQUIREMENTS ............................................................................................................ 10
RECORD DATE REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................................................. 11
POA REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................................................................. 15
APPROXIMATE AGM PROXY VOTING SEASON ........................................................................................... 18
ABSTAIN TREATMENT ................................................................................................................................. 20

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MARKET MECHANICS OVERVIEW

COUNTRY SHARE- RECORD POWER OF RE- SPLIT / PARTIAL MEETING BO PER SHARE
BLOCKING DATE ATTORNEY REGISTRATION VOTING ATTENDANCE DISCLOSURE VOTING
MARKET MARKET MARKET MARKET ALLOWED REQUIRED REQUIRED RIGHTS

ADR Meetings NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Argentina 1 YES NO YES NO YES / YES YES NO

Australia 2 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Austria 3 NO YES VARIES NO YES / YES NO YES One vote per

Share

Bahamas 4 NO YES NO NO YES / YES VARIES NO One vote per

Share

Bahrain 5 NO YES NO NO NO / NO YES NO

Bangladesh 6 NO YES NO NO NO / NO YES NO

Belgium 7 NO YES VARIES NO YES / YES NO YES

Bermuda 8 NO YES NO NO YES / YES VARIES NO One vote per

Share

Bosnia & NO YES NO NO NO / VARIES NO YES One vote per

Herzegovina 9 Share

Botswana NO NO NO NO NO / NO NO NO One vote per

Share

Brazil 10 NO NO YES NO NO / NO YES NO One vote per

Share

Bulgaria NO YES VARIES NO YES / YES NO VARIES One vote per

Share

Canada 11 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Cayman Islands NO YES NO NO VARIES / VARIES VARIES NO One vote per

12
Share

Chile 13 NO YES VARIES NO NO / YES YES NO

Notes:
1 Argentina - One vote per share; however, some corporate bylaws have modified this general principle to bestow special privileges on some classes of shares,
including having up to five votes per share.
2 Australia – Voting entitlement may vary when private placement issues are on the agenda.
3 Austria - Meeting POA's are issuer specific. The custodian is able to complete some POA's on behalf of the Beneficial Owner.
4 Bahamas - Meeting attendance requirement depends on the underlying country of issue.
5 Bahrain - One vote per share, however this would depend upon the issuer as there are instances of one or more controlling shareholders.
6 Bangladesh – Typically has one vote per share, except shares with priority to vote.
7 Belgium – (a) The EU Shareholder Rights Directive effective Jan. 1, 2012. Applicable to companies listed on a regulated market. But share-blocking may still apply to
companies listed on non-regulated markets ("Vrije markt" and "Alternext"). (b) In 2019, Belgium updated its company law, allowing companies to have the possibility
to opt-in for loyalty shares (double voting rights once held for at least 2 years). Few companies have opted in thus far. (c) Meeting Attend only may not be permitted
depending on the Issuer. The options are to vote prior to the meeting or to attend and vote at the meeting. If a shareholder has previously voted, they would not be
able to attend the meeting, even in an attend only capacity.
8 Bermuda - Meeting attendance requirement depends on the underlying country of issue.
9 Bosnia & Herzegovina - In the Bosnian market split voting is not allowed, partial voting is only allowed for segregated accounts.
10 Brazil – (a) Split voting is not allowed under the same CVM number. (b) The original rules established that the RVC was mandatory for annual shareholder
meetings and for special meetings with election proposals (board and fiscal council elections) held at any time of the year. The updated instruction, released on Dec.
20, 2017, amended this provision and established, in addition to the aforementioned shareholder meetings, that the RVC is also mandatory for all special meetings
held on the same day of the annual shareholder meetings. The goal is to provide greater standardization to the market.
11 Canada - One vote per share in most cases unless specified otherwise. Family-owned or controlled companies are prevalent in Canada and tend to be maintained
through multiple-voting share vehicles.
12 Cayman Islands - Meeting attendance requirement depends on the underlying country of issue. Split and partial voting are determined by the issuer.
13 Chile - Voting is performed by show of hands or secret ballot.

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MARKET MECHANICS OVERVIEW, CONT.

COUNTRY SHARE- RECORD POWER OF RE- SPLIT / PARTIAL MEETING BO PER SHARE
BLOCKING DATE ATTORNEY REGISTRATION VOTING ALLOWED ATTENDANCE DISCLOSURE VOTING
MARKET MARKET MARKET MARKET REQUIRED REQUIRED RIGHTS

China 14 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Colombia NO NO NO NO NO / NO YES NO One vote per

Share

Costa Rica NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Croatia NO YES NO NO YES / YES YES VARIES One vote per

Share

Curacao 15 VARIES VARIES NO NO YES / YES VARIES NO

Cyprus 16 NO VARIES VARIES NO YES / YES VARIES VARIES One vote per
Share

Czech Republic NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Denmark 17 NO YES NO YES NO / NO NO YES

Ecuador NO NO NO NO NO / NO YES YES One vote per

Share

Egypt 18 YES NO YES NO NO / YES YES NO One vote per

Share

Estonia NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO VARIES One vote per

Share

Falkland Islands NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Faroe Islands NO NO YES YES YES / YES NO YES

Finland 19 NO YES NO YES YES / YES NO YES

France 20 NO YES NO NO VARIES / YES NO YES

Notes:
14 China – (a) Local Chinese Class 'A' and 'B' shares may have different record dates. As such ISS often creates separate Class meetings. In the China market, it's not a
mandatory requirement for the listed company to accept investor's authorization and execute voting on behalf of the investors at the meeting. Occasionally, they
choose to reject the instruction without any reason. (b) Only FOR votes are processed on director cumulative votes - Against votes are ignored.
15 Curacao (previously Netherlands Antilles) - Meeting attendance requirement depends on the underlying country of issue.
16 Cyprus - Meeting attendance requirement depends on the underlying country of issue.
17 Denmark – (a) The permanent segregation is no longer required with the implementation of the Shareholder Rights Directive, should a foreign client whose
holdings are held in an omnibus account wish to vote, this is possible if their shares are registered by the registration date (record date) and a Power of Attorney
specific to this client is in place at the same time. (b) The corresponding voting right varies according to the company regulation. i.e. one share can carry more than
one vote. This information is usually available when the AGM is published. (c) Effective July 1st, the Danish Parliament has adopted a bill in the Danish Companies Act
to remove the power of attorney requirements.
18 Egypt – Partial voting is allowed in market practice.
19 Finland - The amount of voting rights per share is determined in each company’s Articles of association, usually one share equals one voting right but there might
be some exceptions depending on the company.
20 France – (a) For French custodians (i.e. the Fund/shareholder is domiciled in France): the shareholder (even the BO according to the law) has to sign the proxy card
for voting (BNP and SGSS clients are not required to complete the French proxy card if they have a delegation of signature in place for non-registered equity shares).
(b) Regarding the adoption of the Florange Act on March 29, 2014, the principle remains based on ordinary shares, while it now provides for the automatic acquisition
of double voting rights to shareholders holding their shares in a registered form for at least two years. An amendment to the bylaws (requiring a two-thirds majority)
must be adopted by April 2, 2016 by shareholders to opt-out of this new system and to stay in line with the one share-one vote principle. The Florange Act provision
on double-voting rights does not impact companies which are not listed on a regulated market and/or which had already inserted in their bylaws double-voting rights
prior to April 2, 2014. Double-voting rights are attached to the person holding the shares itself, and not to the shares, therefore, when these shares held in a registered
form are transferred, they lose their double-voting rights. For those shares double voting rights, registered holders should receive all documentation for the meeting
from the issuer. (c) Apart from double-voting rights, another system impacts voting rights in France. Several issuers maintain a voting right ceiling, which applies to
any shareholder holding more than a percentage of the voting rights set in their bylaws. The voting right ceiling can be waived if shareholder can hold more than a
certain percentage of the voting rights, after a takeover bid they would have launched. (d) Split voting is not allowed for most custodians.

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MARKET MECHANICS OVERVIEW, CONT.

COUNTRY SHARE- RECORD POWER OF RE- SPLIT / PARTIAL MEETING BO PER SHARE
BLOCKING DATE ATTORNEY REGISTRATION VOTING ATTENDANCE DISCLOSURE VOTING
MARKET MARKET MARKET MARKET ALLOWED REQUIRED REQUIRED RIGHTS

Germany 21 NO VARIES NO VARIES YES / YES NO VARIES One vote per

Share

Ghana NO NO NO NO YES / YES YES NO One vote per

Share

Gibraltar 22 NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Greece 23 NO YES NO NO YES / YES YES VARIES One vote per

Share

Guernsey NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Hong Kong 24 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Hungary 25 NO YES YES NO NO / YES NO VARIES

Iceland VARIES VARIES YES YES NO / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

India 26 NO YES NO NO YES / YES VARIES NO

Indonesia 27 NO YES NO NO NO / VARIES YES NO

Ireland NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO VARIES

Isle of Man NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Israel 28 NO YES NO NO YES / YES YES NO One vote per

Share

Notes:
21 Germany – (a) Voting entitlement may be restricted if shareholder sits in a position of conflicting interest. (b) Re-Registration is dependent on share type. (c) Article
21 WpHG has been amended whereby voting rights are now defined as stemming from shares belonging to the shareholder himself, i.e. clarification has been given
whereby it is the responsibility of the end-investor and not the intermediary to disclose respective final beneficiary voting rights. Our interpretation of the amendment
is that it is the legal obligation of the investor to disclose their position to the issuer at the point when their shareholding exceeds the threshold stipulated in the
issuers Articles of Association (independent of the voting process). Should the investor fail to meet their obligation they risk forfeiting their voting right at the
shareholder meeting. As such, we believe there is no longer the requirement for local market participants to register positions in order to facilitate voting.
22 Gibraltar - Per legislation and market practice, 6 calendar days prior to meeting date for the initial meeting and 5 days for 2nd/3rd call meeting. If it falls on
weekend, Friday date should be selected.
23 Greece - The record date is set at the beginning of the 5th day prior to the general meeting. In case of a second call, if the second-call is scheduled more than 30
days after the canceled meeting, or the issuer has published a new meeting notice, the record date is set at the beginning of the 3rd day prior to the second-call
meeting date.
24 Hong Kong – The rules pertaining to the 'Voting of the General Meeting' have been amended to make voting by poll mandatory on all resolutions at general
meetings with effect from 01 Jan 2009.
25 Hungary - There is no general rule for the voting right per share, but it is usually one vote per share. However, the shares that include preference for voting can
contain more voting rights. This is defined by the issuer in the Articles of Association.
26 India – (a) Record date is applicable for meeting events, as mentioned in the notice / agenda of the meeting. (b) Attendance is not necessary for Postal Ballot
events as the votes can be lodged via e-voting or by filling the postal ballot form and sending the same to the scrutinizer. Some publicly listed banks still follow SBI Act
1955 wherein in a shareholder who has been registered as a shareholder three months prior the meeting date shall have one vote for each fifty shares held by him or
it. Other than that, each share is counted as one vote. (c) In case of vote by meeting attendance (show of hands), every individual is counted as a single vote. In case
of e-voting, each share is counted as one vote. (d) While split voting is allowed, it is at the issuer’s discretion if they wish to not allow split voting on a single agenda
item.
27 Indonesia – (a) Voting entitlement may be restricted if shareholder sits in a position of conflicting interest. (b) Vote will be counted based on physical attendance.
The shareholder or their proxy must attend in person and raise their hand to vote in the meeting. Each representative will be counted exactly by how many shares
they represent. One share is equivalent to one vote. (c) For First call, minimum requirement of the attendance is 50% of the total shares for ordinary resolutions and
75% for special resolutions. In case the meeting does not meet quorum, the meeting has to be adjourn maximum 21 days from the first call of the meeting date. (d)
Partial vote acceptance is at the issuer's discretion.
28 Israel - The Israeli market often requires a declaration to be made with vote instructions to indicate whether the shareholder has a personal or controlling interest
in the company. Additional explanation is necessary when a client has a personal or controlling interest.

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MARKET MECHANICS OVERVIEW, CONT.

COUNTRY SHARE- RECORD POWER OF RE- SPLIT / PARTIAL MEETING BO PER SHARE
BLOCKING DATE ATTORNEY REGISTRATION VOTING ATTENDANCE DISCLOSURE VOTING
MARKET MARKET MARKET MARKET ALLOWED REQUIRED REQUIRED RIGHTS

Italy 29 NO YES NO NO NO / YES YES YES One vote per

Share

Jamaica NO YES NO NO NO / NO NO YES One vote per

Share

Japan 30 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO On vote per 100

shares

Jersey NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Jordan NO NO NO NO NO / NO YES NO One vote per

Share

Kazakhstan 31 NO YES NO NO NO / NO YES NO

Kenya NO YES NO NO NO / NO NO NO One vote per

Share

Kuwait 32 NO YES NO (see NO NO / NO YES NO

notes)

Latvia 33 NO YES VARIES NO YES / YES VARIES YES

Lebanon 334 NO YES NO NO NO / YES YES NO

Liberia NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Liechtenstein NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Lithuania 35 NO YES VARIES NO YES / YES NO YES One vote per

Share

Luxembourg VARIES VARIES NO NO YES / YES NO YES Normally, one

vote per Share

Notes:
29 Italy – (a) Meeting attendance requirement depends on the company's articles of incorporation. (b) Local Italian Banks: Re-registration is only for local Italian
banks: in order to vote those meeting, shareholders have to be registered on the company stock ledger at least 90 days prior the first call. Blocking is applied to local
banks and private entities. (c) For Local Banks shares each shareholder has only one voting right, regardless of the number of shares held.
30 Japan – (a) Over 2/3 of Japanese companies have a fiscal year end of 31 March and hold their shareholder meetings in a 1-week span in the latter part of June.
(b) In order to attend a meeting, the client should contact their custodian, however, the client may need to work directly with the issuer. Meeting attendance may be
rejected.
31 Kazakhstan - (a) One share — one vote, except for the following cases: 1) where there is a restriction of the maximum number of votes on shares granted to one
shareholder in the case specified by the legislative acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan; 2) cumulative vote in electing members of the board of directors - available
votes are multiplied by the number of directors to be elected; 3) where one vote is granted to each person who has the right to vote at the general meeting of
shareholders, for voting on procedural issues of conducting the general meeting of shareholders . (b) Beneficial Owner disclosure is required when voting ADR's.
32 Kuwait – (a) Record date, typically 1-2 days before meeting. (b) Kuwait typically requires a POA at the account set up stage. This is a one-time set up at account
opening.
33 Latvia - One vote per share, however, different companies can have different voting rights. In case of board of directors’ election cumulate voting is used – available
votes are multiplied by the number of directors to be elected.
34 Lebanon - One vote per share, but according to article 117 of the Code of Commerce, registered shareholders whose paid up shares exist under the same name for
at least the last 2 years before each meeting is convened, shall be given title to two votes for each share owned.
35 Lithuania - One vote per share. In case of board of directors’ election cumulate voting is used – available votes are multiplied by the number of directors to be
elected.

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MARKET MECHANICS OVERVIEW, CONT.

COUNTRY SHARE- RECORD POWER OF RE- SPLIT / PARTIAL MEETING BO PER SHARE
BLOCKING DATE ATTORNEY REGISTRATION VOTING ATTENDANCE DISCLOSURE VOTING
MARKET MARKET MARKET MARKET ALLOWED REQUIRED REQUIRED RIGHTS

Malaysia 36 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Malta NO VARIES NO NO YES / YES YES YES One vote per

Share

Marshall Is 37 NO YES NO NO YES / YES VARIES NO One vote per

Share

Mauritius VARIES YES NO NO NO / NO YES NO One vote per

Share

Mexico 38 NO YES NO NO YES / YES YES NO One vote per

Share

Monaco NO VARIES NO NO YES / YES NO YES

Morocco YES NO YES NO YES / YES YES NO

Namibia NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Netherlands NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO YES One vote per

Share

New Zealand 39 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Nigeria 40 NO VARIES NO NO VARIES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Norway 41 NO YES VARIES NO NO / YES NO VARIES See Note

Oman NO NO NO NO NO / NO YES NO One vote per

Share

Pakistan NO VARIES NO NO YES / YES VARIES NO One vote per

Share

Palestine NO NO NO NO NO / NO YES YES One vote per

Share

Panama NO YES NO NO YES / YES YES NO One vote per

Share

Peru NO YES NO NO NO / NO YES YES

Philippines 42 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Notes:
36 Malaysia - In case of vote by show of hands, every individual is counted as a single vote. In case of poll, each share is counted as one vote.
37 Marshall Islands - Meeting attendance requirement depends on the underlying country of issue.
38 Mexico - Some Mexican issuers restrict voting on certain classes of shares to local investors only - Foreign Investment Law that limits foreign ownership and voting
rights on strategic industries.
39 New Zealand - In the case of a meeting of shareholders held under clause 3(a), unless a poll is demanded, voting method is determined by the chairperson of the
meeting: (a) voting by voice; or (b) voting by show of hands or (c) voting by poll. One vote per share applies to voting by poll.
40 Nigeria - Split voting is only permitted when a poll is demanded, otherwise, split voting is not allowed.
41 Norway – (a) Accounts belonging to the same beneficial owner cannot split votes. (b) More classes of shares with different voting rights can exist. Voting rights are
defined in the articles of association. (c) BO disclosure is determined by issuer.
42 Philippines - In stock corporations, every stockholder entitled to vote shall have the right to vote in person or by proxy the number of shares of stock standing, at
the time fixed in the by-laws, in his own name on the stock books of the corporation, or where the by-laws are silent, at the time of the election; and said stockholder
may vote such number of shares for as many persons as there are directors to be elected or he may cumulate said shares and give one candidate as many votes as the
number of directors to be elected multiplied by the number of his shares shall equal, or he may distribute them on the same principle among as many candidates as he
shall see fit.

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MARKET MECHANICS OVERVIEW, CONT.

COUNTRY SHARE- RECORD POWER OF RE- SPLIT / PARTIAL MEETING BO PER SHARE
BLOCKING DATE ATTORNEY REGISTRATION VOTING ATTENDANCE DISCLOSURE VOTING
MARKET MARKET MARKET MARKET ALLOWED REQUIRED REQUIRED RIGHTS

Poland 43 NO YES YES NO YES / YES NO VARIES

Portugal 44 NO YES VARIES NO VARIES / YES NO YES

Qatar 45 NO YES NO NO NO / NO YES YES One vote per

Share

Romania NO YES YES NO NO / NO NO YES One vote per

Share

Russia 46 NO YES NO NO NO / NO NO YES

Saudi Arabia NO NO NO NO NO / NO NO NO One vote per

Share

Serbia 47 NO YES YES NO YES / YES NO NO

Singapore 48 NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Slovakia 49 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO YES

Slovenia NO YES YES NO YES / YES NO YES One vote per

Share

South Africa NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

South Korea NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Spain 50 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO VARIES

Sri Lanka NO NO NO NO NO / NO NO NO One vote per

Share

Swaziland NO YES NO NO NO / NO NO NO One vote per

Share

Sweden 51 NO YES YES YES NO / YES VARIES YES

Switzerland VARIES NO VARIES VARIES YES / YES NO VARIES One vote per
52 Share

Notes:
43 Poland - As a matter of principle, one share carries one vote. However, the Commercial Companies Code allows certain exceptions to this rule, by providing for
shares with preferential voting rights, but not more than two votes per share.
44 Portugal – (a) Accounts belonging to the same beneficial owner cannot split votes. (b) One vote per share, however, it can depend on the bylaws of each company.
45 Qatar - The sub attends on behalf of the client if the sub owns shares in the company. You have to be a shareowner to attend and vote at the meeting.
46 Russia – (a) One vote per share. In the case of board of directors’ election cumulate voting is used – available votes are multiplied by the number of directors to be
elected. (b) Beneficial Owner disclosure is required for ADR shares. BO details for local shares are maintained with the sub-custodian. (c) Bank of Russia Directive No.
3680-U will require a registration number and registration date be included with vote instructions as a condition for voting Depository Receipts. (d). Meeting
attendance is not allowed for DR’s.
47 Serbia - One vote per share, however there are rare issuers where 100 shares = 1 vote; such voting rules would be determined in issuer’s Statute or other document
proscribing the shareholder meeting governance
48 Singapore - In case of vote by show of hands, every individual is counted as a single vote. In case of poll, each share is counted as one vote.
49 Slovakia - One share represents one vote or for each 0.01 EUR of nominal value of shares held shareholder has one voting right (i.e. when you hold 100 pcs of share
of Company XY and the nominal value of 1 share is 33.20 EUR you have 100*33.2/0.01=33200 votes. It depends on the nominal value of the shares.
50 Spain – (a) One vote per share, except cases when there is a minimum quantity to attend the meeting. (b) Some issuers may have a holding requirement 5 days
prior to the meeting date to have shares subscribed into the issuer registry.
51 Sweden - (a) Split voting is not allowed at the Beneficial Owner level, but is allowed at the nominee level. (b) For some meetings, voting is done by show of hands
at the meeting. Every B-share may be eligible for one vote and every A-share for 10, 100, 1000 or any other number of votes.
52 Switzerland – (a) Bearer shares are subject to share-blocking. (b) Re-registration is only for registered shares and BO details are required when voting. (c) Larger
companies use a registration date instead of a record date.

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MARKET MECHANICS OVERVIEW, CONT.

COUNTRY SHARE- RECORD POWER OF RE- SPLIT / PARTIAL MEETING BO PER SHARE
BLOCKING DATE ATTORNEY REGISTRATION VOTING ATTENDANCE DISCLOSURE VOTING
MARKET MARKET MARKET MARKET ALLOWED REQUIRED REQUIRED RIGHTS

Taiwan 53 NO YES NO NO YES / NO VARIES NO One vote per

Share

Tanzania NO YES NO NO NO / NO NO NO One vote per

Share

Thailand 54 NO YES NO NO YES / YES YES NO One vote per

Share

Trinidad & NO SEE NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Tobago 55 NOTES Share

Tunisia NO NO YES NO NO / YES YES NO One vote per

Share

Turkey 56 NO NO VARIES NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Uganda NO NO NO NO NO / NO NO NO

Ukraine 57 NO YES NO NO YES / YES YES NO

United Arab NO YES NO NO NO / NO YES NO One vote per

Emirates Share

United Kingdom NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Uruguay NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

United States 58 NO YES NO NO YES / YES NO NO Issuer specific

Venezuela NO NO NO NO NO / NO YES NO One vote per

Share

Vietnam 59 NO YES YES NO NO / NO VARIES NO One vote per

Share

Virgin Islands 60 NO NO NO NO YES / YES VARIES NO

Zambia NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO One vote per

Share

Zimbabwe NO NO NO NO YES / YES NO NO

Notes:
53 Taiwan – (a) In order to split your vote when held in an aggregate account, clients must send a duly signed declaration letter to local sub-custodian via their global
custodian. The form is valid for 1 year and has to be completed next year upon expiration, similar to the POA process, and should be completed by late January.
Form needs to be re-issued if a FINI buys shares of companies not previously held. This means from date of issuance it only includes shares held at issuers at time of
issuance. Split voting form will be presented to issuers 5 days before meetings date. (b) There is a quorum of 50 percent of the issued shares for a meeting to be
valid. (c) In the process of electing directors & supervisors at a shareholders' meeting, per the Company Act, cumulative voting system will be adopted: the company
would count the number of votes submitted. For non-election item, most of the cases are voted by show of hands; only when dispute is stirred and chairperson
announces to vote by poll, voting will be counted on one share one vote basis. (d) Taiwan regulations make it a requirement to vote when shares held are greater
than 300,000. If no vote is submitted by the client prior to the cutoff, an ABSTAIN vote will be submitted by the sub-custodian. (e) Electronic voting (e-voting) can be
conducted via "STOCKVOTE", which is provided by Taiwan Depository & Clearing Corporation (TDCC). Sub-custodians submit votes via TDCC’s STP system.
54 Thailand - Foreign investors are eligible to vote if they hold securities designated as foreign shares. Regarding meeting attendance, the shareholder can appoint
anyone to attend and vote in the meeting on their behalf by completing proxy voting form.
55 Trinidad & Tobago - There is a pre-registration period to determine voting rights.
56 Turkey - As of October 1, 2012 sub-custodians can submit votes electronically through the e-GEMS platform.
57 Ukraine - One vote per share. In case of board of directors’ election cumulate voting is used – available votes are multiplied by the number of directors elected.
58 USA - One vote per share is the most prevalent, but in recent years a significant percentage of newly listed companies have adopted a multi-class share structure
with unequal voting rights.
59 Vietnam - In case physical attendance is required, it varies among issuing companies if they will accept the proxy card without physical attendance.
60 Virgin Islands – (a) Meeting attendance is a requirement for AGM's only. (b) Record Date will only be provided if the meeting materials specifically disclose.

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SHARE-BLOCKING REQUIREMENTS
COUNTRY SHARE-BLOCKING START PERIOD SHARE-BLOCKING END PERIOD IMPACT OF SECOND CALLS

Argentina Generally 3 business days prior to 1 business day following successful If a meeting goes to 2nd call,
meeting date. conclusion of the meeting. shareholder must re-submit
instructions.

Curacao 1 Varies by Issuer. 1 business day following successful Not applicable.

conclusion of the meeting.

Egypt Generally 3-5 business days prior 1 business day following successful Not applicable.
to meeting date. conclusion of the meeting.

Iceland 2 Varies by Sub-custodian 1 business day following record date.

Kazakhstan 3 Varies by Issuer. 1 business day following successful Not applicable.

conclusion of the meeting.

Lebanon 4 Varies by Issuer. 1 business day following successful Not applicable.

conclusion of the meeting.

Luxembourg 5 Varies by issuer. 1 business day following successful If a meeting goes to 2nd call, shareholders
conclusion of the meeting. may need to re-submit instructions.

Mauritius 6 Varies by issuer. 1 business day following successful Not applicable.

conclusion of the meeting.

Morocco Generally 5 business days prior to 1 business day following successful Not applicable.
meeting date. conclusion of the meeting.

Switzerland 7 Varies by issuer. 1 business day following successful Not applicable.

conclusion of the meeting.

Notes:
1 Curacao is not a share-blocking market, however share-blocking practices may vary depending on the underlying country of issue.
2 Shares are blocked if instructions are received before the record date (record date can be set to just one day prior to the meeting date, therefore, blocking could
occur from the time the vote instruction is sent through one day prior to the meeting date). Not all sub-custodians block shares.
3 Kazakhstan is not a share-blocking market, however share-blocking practices may vary depending on the underlying country of issue.
4 Lebanon is not a share-blocking market, however share-blocking practices may vary depending on the underlying country of issue.
5 Luxembourg: Share-blocking is no longer in effect for listed companies. Un-listed companies and UCITS are not required to comply with the EU Directive and
therefore, share-blocking may still apply to those issuers.
6 Mauritius is not a usual blocking market in practice, but can apply if specified by the issuer.
7 Switzerland: Generally speaking, only bearer-type shares are subject to blocking. However, some local sub-custodians block all types of shares while others do not
block any types of shares.

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RECORD DATE REQUIREMENTS

COUNTRY RECORD DATE RULE* RANGE** (IF NO RULE)
MARKET

Australia YES 48 hours prior to meeting

Austria YES 10 calendar days

Bahamas YES Most are 3-5 weeks prior to meeting

Bahrain YES 1 day before meeting

Bangladesh YES Most are 3-5 weeks prior to meeting

Belgium YES 14 calendar days

Bermuda YES Most are 3-5 weeks prior to meeting

Bosnia & Herzegovina YES 10 calendar days

Bulgaria YES 14 calendar days

Canada 1 YES 30-60 days prior to meeting date

Cayman Islands YES Most are 3-5 weeks prior to meeting

Chile 2 YES 5 business days prior to meeting date

China YES Less than 7 business days prior to meeting

Croatia YES 7 calendar days

Curacao VARIES
(form Neth. Antilles) 3

Cyprus 4 VARIES Date determined by the issuer and stated on the meeting notice.
Must be no more than 2 working days prior to the general meeting.
Most are 1-2 days prior to meeting date.

Czech Republic YES 7 calendar days

Denmark YES 7 calendar days

Estonia YES 7 calendar days

Finland YES 8 business days

France 5 YES 2 business days

Notes:
* Rule: Set number of days prior to meeting date used in calculating the record date.
** Range: If no rule exists, range within which the record date typically falls.
1 Canada: Each Provincial and Territorial Business Corporations Act requires different standards - the widest range is no more than 60 days prior to mtg date and not
less than 30 days before meeting date (under the OBCA)
2 Chile: Not all companies report a record date. If record date is set, it is usually for ADR's.
3 Curacao : Can vary depending on underlying country of issue and/or issuer.
4 Cyprus: Can have a record date of 5 business days prior to mtg.
5 France: As of January 01, 2015 record date is 2 business days prior to meeting date

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RECORD DATE REQUIREMENTS, CONT.

COUNTRY RECORD DATE RULE* RANGE** (IF NO RULE)
MARKET

Germany 6 VARIES Close of business on the 22nd day before the AGM (for record date);
Always 7 days prior to the meeting for registration date.

Greece 7 YES 5 calendar days In case of a second call, if the second call is scheduled more than 30 days
after the canceled meeting, or the issuer has published a new meeting
notice, the record date is set at the beginning of the third day prior to the
second-call meeting.

Guernsey YES 2 business days

Hong Kong 8 YES Varies by company. Some set it at 30 calendar days prior to meeting

Hungary 9 YES 6 PM on the second working day The record date is now fixed at 2 business days before the AGM, unless
prior to the date of the meeting stated by the issuer.

Iceland VARIES If set by the issuer, it is generally 1 business day prior to mtg

India 10 YES For AGM and EGM, record date is normally set to 7 calendar days prior to
the meeting date. For Postal Ballot meetings, record date is often set
between 1 - 2 months prior to the meeting date.

Indonesia YES For general meeting, it is between 21-30 days prior to the meeting date.
For bondholders meeting, it is around one week before the meeting date.

Ireland YES 2 business days

Isle-Of-Man YES 2 business days

Israel YES Most are 3-5 weeks prior to meeting

Italy YES 7 business days

Jamaica YES 2 business days The Record date is set according to each company's bylaws.

Japan 11 YES For AGM's: Fiscal year end (prior For EGM's: Within 3 months prior to mtg. 1-2 months is typical
to mtg)

Jersey YES 2 business days

Kazakhstan 12 YES

Kuwait YES Typically 1-2 business days prior to meeting

Latvia YES 6 business days

Notes:
6 Germany: As of 01-Nov-2006, all public companies with bearer shares must use a record date. The few companies that have registered shares use neither record
date nor share-blocking, but a registration date
7 Greece: The record date is set at the beginning of the fifth day prior to the general meeting.
8 Hong Kong: Most companies have record dates.
9 Hungary: The record date is now fixed at 2 business days before the AGM, and must be thus homogenous for all issuers
10 India: In addition to postal ballots, AGMs and EGMs that allow e-voting will also have record dates. Record dates are issuer specific.
11 Japan: As AGM's must be held within 3 months of the FY-end, the AGM record date is nearly 3 months prior to meeting (with exception of about 10 small cap.
companies).
12 Kazakhstan: As determined by the issuer.

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RECORD DATE REQUIREMENTS, CONT.

COUNTRY RECORD DATE RULE* RANGE** (IF NO RULE)

MARKET

Lebanon YES

Liechtenstein YES Most are 3-5 weeks prior to meeting

Lithuania YES 5 business days prior to

the mtg date

Luxembourg 13 VARIES

Malaysia YES 3 -5 business days prior to meeting

Malta YES Date determined by the issuer and stated on the meeting notice. Most
are 5-20 days prior to meeting date

Marshall Islands YES Generally between 1-3 months prior to meeting

Mauritius 14 YES

Mexico YES 6 business days for meetings held in Mexico City. 9 business days for
meetings held outside Mexico City.

Monaco 15 VARIES Most are 1-2 weeks prior to mtg

Netherlands YES 28 calendar days

New Zealand YES 2 days prior to the meeting date

Nigeria VARIES

Norway YES 5 business days prior to the meeting date

Pakistan 16 VARIES General market practice is 1-2 weeks prior to meeting date.

Panama YES No more than 40 days prior to meeting

Peru 17 YES

Philippines 18 YES At least 30 calendar days prior to meeting

Poland YES 16 calendar days

Portugal YES 5 business days The general rule for record date is 5 business days unless overwritten
by record date indicated by issuers in their meeting materials.

Qatar YES 1 day before meeting

Notes:
13 Luxembourg: Only some companies use record date. Some use blocking date and others do not use either. If there is a record date, it varies from issuer to issuer,
usually it's 5 business days before the meeting.
14 Mauritius: Only some companies use record dates. Range cannot be determined.
15 Monaco: The Record date is set according to each company's bylaws.
16 Pakistan: Record date is books closure
17 Peru: Record date is 2 business days prior to the meeting date if the company does not announce specifically.
18 Philippines: All companies have record dates.

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RECORD DATE REQUIREMENTS, CONT.

COUNTRY RECORD DATE RULE* RANGE** (IF NO RULE)

MARKET

Romania 19 YES Between announcement day (≥ 30 days prior to the

meeting) and general meeting, but in no case earlier
than 60 days prior to the meeting.

Russia YES 45-60 days prior to meeting

Serbia YES May not be more than 60 or less than 10 days before
the general meeting

Slovakia YES 3 calendar days

Slovenia YES 4 calendar days

South Africa 20 YES 3 business days

South Korea 21 YES For AGM's: Fiscal year end (prior to mtg). For EGM's:
Within 1 month prior to mtg

Spain YES 5 calendar days

Swaziland YES 2 business days prior to the meeting

date

Sweden 22 YES 5 business days

Taiwan YES AGM: 60 calendar days prior to mtg. EGM: 30

calendar days prior to meeting

Tanzania 23 YES

Thailand YES 20-30 calendar days prior to meeting

Ukraine YES 4 business days prior to the meeting

date

United Arab Emirates YES 1 business day

United Kingdom YES 2 business days

United States 24 YES 30-60 days

Vietnam YES For AGM, record date is often 1 month before the
meeting date. For EGM and Postal Ballot, record
date is about 3 to 4 weeks before the meeting date.

Notes:
19 Romania: Record date applies to all companies; the exact timeframe is company specific.
20 South Africa: Record date is set at 3 business days unless stated in the issuers meeting materials.
21 South Korea: As AGM's must be held within 3 months of Y-end, the AGM record date is nearly 3 months prior to mtg.
22 Sweden: As of 01-Jan-2006, amendments to the Swedish Companies Act reduced the record date to 5 business days prior to mtg. Record date cannot fall on a
weekend or holiday.
23 Tanzania: The record date is determined by the Issuer.
24 United States: Record date is set by the issuer, with guidelines set by the state of incorporation.

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January 2024

POA REQUIREMENTS
COUNTRY NOTARIZE CONSULARISE APOSTILLE SUPPORTING VALID POA REQUIRED TO BE COMPLETED
DOCUMENTATION IN ORIGINAL LANGUAGE
REQUIRED

Argentina 1 YES YES (or apostilled) NO NO 99 Yrs YES

Austria 2 NO NO NO NO See notes Varies

Belgium 3 NO NO NO NO Indefinitely NO

Brazil 4 YES NO YES NO 1 YR NO

Bulgaria 5 YES YES (or apostilled) YES YES See notes NO

Chile 6 See notes See notes See notes See notes See notes See notes

Cyprus 7 YES NO YES YES Indefinitely NO

Egypt 8 YES YES NO NO Indefinitely YES

Faroe Islands 9 VARIES NO NO NO Indefinitely NO

Hungary 10 YES See notes See notes See notes 1 YR See notes

Iceland YES NO NO NO 3 YRS NO

Israel 11 YES NO NO NO 1 YR NO

Kuwait 12 See notes See notes See notes See notes Indefinitely See notes

Notes:
1 Some sub-custodians require the PoA to be completed in Spanish.
2 POA's are required at the issuer level. Occasionally, the custodian is able to complete the POA on behalf of the Beneficial Owner.
3 PoA is not a formal requirement in Belgium. Many custodians do not list Belgium as a PoA market. Some custodians and their local agents require the beneficial
owners to complete PoAs so that they can complete the PoAs on behalf of the beneficial owner.
4 PoA does not have to be completed in Portuguese. Name on PoA must exactly match name registered at CAVALI (central depository) and all signatories must be
mentioned in body of PoA. Consularization is still required for countries that are not part of the Hague Convention of 1961.
5 Bulgaria has the most onerous PoA requirements and a PoA must be completed PER issuer/meeting which is unique. However, some PoAs can be completed by the
sub-custodian - the signee of the document depends on the account structure (omnibus – the Custodian / segregated – the Beneficial Owner). Supporting
documentation required includes the following: (a) Full company name, registered address, date and number of registration on the Commercial Registrar of the
shareholder and of the proxy (as well as of the physical persons authorized to represent them). (b) Number of the shares owned and the serial number of the
depository receipts/ certificates. (c) Agenda of the general meeting. (d) Drafts of the decisions to be voted on each of the agenda topics. (e) Vote on each of the
agenda topics. (f) Date and signature.
6 Requirements in Chile are dependent on the custodian and sub-custodian. In some instances for segregated accounts, a Beneficial Owner signed POA is set up by
the sub custodian bank on account set-up. For Omnibus accounts a POA is not necessary.
7 A POA may be required at the issuer level. For some custodians, the POA is set up and maintained by the custodian. For others, the POA requirement is with the
Beneficial Owner.
8 Many companies do not require PoAs. However, ISS strongly suggests PoAs be executed in order to ensure accurate processing of votes.
9 Issuers listed in the Faroe Islands are subject to the same PoA requirements as Denmark. If a valid POA is in place for Denmark, it is sufficient for Faroe Islands.
10 PoAs are required for all meetings. Some issuers require a meeting specific PoA. General PoAs are valid for 12 months from the date of issue and must be
apostilled, unless the country of origin of the PoA is not a signatory to The Hague convention, in which case the PoA must be consularised. All PoAs must be notarised,
with the notary confirming the authority of the signees of the PoA. Certain text can be used for this which negates the need for additional supporting documentation.
If this text is not used, a Certificate of Secretary or other documentation confirming the authority of the signees is required and this documentation also needs to be
legalised. Please contact your ISS Account Manager for further details. PoAs are bilingual with English and Hungarian text side by side. Both sides of the PoAs must be
completed correctly.
11 All bondholder meetings require a PoA.
12 Kuwait is not considered a POA market, however, this market typically requires a POA/authorization at the account set up stage.

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POA REQUIREMENTS, CONT.

COUNTRY NOTARIZE CONSULARISE APOSTILLE SUPPORTING VALID POA REQUIRED
DOCUMENTATION TO BE
REQUIRED COMPLETED IN
ORIGINAL
LANGUAGE

Latvia 13 YES NO NO NO See notes NO

Lithuania 14 See notes See notes See notes See notes See notes See notes

Morocco 15 Varies NO NO NO See notes NO

Norway 16 YES NO NO YES (Authorized Indefinitely NO

list of signatures)

Peru 17 YES YES NO YES See notes

Poland 18 YES YES NO NO Indefinitely YES

Portugal 19 NO NO NO See notes See notes See notes

Romania 20 See notes See notes See notes NO 1 Meeting See notes

Russia 21 YES NO YES NO 3 YRS NO

Serbia 22 See notes See notes See notes NO See notes See notes

Slovenia 23 See notes See notes See notes NO 1 Meeting NO

Notes:
13 PoA is required for every meeting by every issuer, however occasionally a third party can complete a PoA on behalf of the beneficial owner. PoA expires when a
definite period of time stated in the PoA expires.
14 Lithuania has meeting specific or general PoA that applies to several meetings (available from Sub-custodian prior to meeting).
15 Meeting specific POAs are required. Citi requires notarization.
16 Depending upon the custodian and sub-custodian, a PoA is required in the Norwegian market to ensure “Abstain” and “Against” votes are successfully represented.
The PoA allows the bank's sub-custodian to attend and vote at the meeting on behalf of the client. Very few issuers require the POA in this market for voting.
17 PoA is only a requirement for the custodian BNP (BNP decided that they are not an entity regulated by the SMV and the POA is an indispensable requirement).
PoA must be completed using the Spanish PoA template. If additional accounts are added under the beneficial owner (depending upon form of original PoA), then an
amendment can be sent to the subcustodian rather than a new PoA. There are two types of PoAs: meeting specific (SPoA) and permanent (PPoA). All PoAs must
include safe keeping account numbers.
18 Poland is often not cited as a PoA market by custodians and rarely does a client need to complete one for proxy voting purposes. Many times the PoAs that are set-
up at the account opening process, which are required for trading and lending purposes, may automatically apply to proxy voting as well. However, a few custodians /
sub-custodians may still require a separate proxy voting PoA.
19 PoA requirements and templates are meeting specific. Some custodians/sub-custodians have a general PoA in place.
20 Meeting specific PoAs are required for voting if the shareholder wishes to vote by proxy. PoA requirements are decided by the issuer. Most PoAs are in Romanian
although a percentage of issuers also publish an English version which can be completed without the need to complete the Romanian version. If an English version is
not available some sub-custodians translate the Romanian version to allow shareholders to complete both PoAs. Generally, PoAs only need to be signed and stamped
although some issuers require notarisation and apostillation. Shareholders may also vote in person, or by correspondence via an issuer specific voting form, which
must be notarised and apostilled. In these cases, a PoA is not required.
21 Russia is often not cited as a PoA market by custodians and rarely does a client need to complete one for proxy voting purposes. Many times the PoAs that are set-
up at the account opening process, which are required for trading and lending purposes, may automatically apply to proxy voting as well. However, a few custodians /
sub-custodians may still require a separate proxy voting PoA. A POA is not required when the issuer allows for electronic voting.
22 Both Company specific and general PoAs are used, as it depends on the issuer directly which one will be accepted. Domestic (Serbian) language is preferred by the
issuer, however in most sub-custodian experience; English PoA is almost always accepted. Document legalization is sometimes required but often, only account
holder's signature and official stamp is required. Usually, the Company specific PoA is in local language and English version is rarely available. In this case, the sub-
custodian issues its own PoA bilingual template for the specific event.
23 A PoA needs to be completed for each meeting (valid only for that specific meeting). It depends on each company's requirements if PoAs should be notarized or
apostilled. The same applies to any additional documentation that may be required.

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POA REQUIREMENTS, CONT.

COUNTRY NOTARIZE CONSULARISE APOSTILLE SUPPORTING VALID POA REQUIRED

DOCUMENTATION TO BE
REQUIRED COMPLETED IN
ORIGINAL
LANGUAGE

Sweden 24 YES NO NO YES 5 YRS NO

Switzerland 25 NO NO NO NO Indefinitely NO

Tunisia 26 YES NO NO See notes 1 YR NO

Turkey 27 See notes See notes See notes See notes See notes See notes

United Arab YES NO NO See notes See notes NO

Emirates 28

Vietnam 29 See notes See notes See notes See notes See notes See notes

Notes:
24 ISS strongly recommends completing 3-5 PoAs. Multiple PoAs are required in the event more than one company is holding meeting on same day. The POA is only
valid for 5 years if specifically mentioned within the POA.
25 A POA is required for voting for CACEIS Bank Luxembourg and CACEIS Paris. Document must be duly signed - No legalization required. BNP and Citibank require a
POA if one is not permanently set up.
26 Tunisia is a POA market per Companies Commercial Code. The CCC do not stipulate a validity period but UIB enforced 1-year expiration to be sure. Contact your
custodian for more details regarding the POA for this market. Authorized Signatory List must be included with the PoA.
27 As of October 1, 2012 sub-custodians can submit votes electronically through the e-GEMS platform and individual PoAs completed by the beneficial owner are no
longer required to process votes. However, an issuer can still request to see a copy of a PoA and therefore some custodians/sub-custodians are still accepting them. A
PoA completed by the beneficial is also still required if the investor wishes to attend in person. A single PoA, also referred to as a general authorization document, is
still required between the custodian and sub-custodian, and is completed by the custodian.
28 POA is required to be in place between the beneficial owner and sub-custodian and many times are set-up at the account opening process.
29 POA's are required at the issuer level. For most, the custodian is able to complete the POA on behalf of the Beneficial Owner. There are also exceptional cases
where issuers require a meeting specific PoA in their own template.

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APPROXIMATE AGM PROXY VOTING SEASON

MARKET JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bahamas
Bangladesh
Belgium
Bermuda
Brazil
British Virgin Islands
Canada
Cayman Islands
Chile
China
Colombia
Curacao (form Neth. Antilles)
Czech Republic
Denmark
Egypt
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Guernsey
Hong Kong
India
Indonesia
Ireland
Isle of Man
Israel
Italy
Japan
Jersey
Kenya
Luxembourg
Malaysia
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Pakistan
Panama
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Russia
Singapore
South Africa

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APPROXIMATE AGM PROXY VOTING SEASON, CONT.

MARKET JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
South Korea
Spain
Sri Lanka
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Thailand
Turkey
Uganda
United Kingdom
United States
Venezuela
Vietnam

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ABSTAIN TREATMENT
COUNTRY "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS "ABSTAIN" INCLUDED IN "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS
"NO VOTE" QUORUM? A VOTE AGAINST A VOTE FOR BOARD'S
BOARD'S PROPOSAL PROPOSAL

Argentina 1

Australia X NO

Austria 2 X YES

Bahamas X

Bangladesh 3

Belgium 4 See Note See Note See Note

Bermuda X

Botswana 5

Brazil 6 X YES

Canada 7 X YES

Cayman Islands X

Channel Island 8

Chile 9 YES

China YES

Colombia 10

Croatia 11

Curacao (formerly X
Netherlands Antilles)

Cyprus X NO

Czech Republic X YES

Denmark 12 X NO

Ecuador 13

Notes:
1 Argentina: For most of the Spanish markets, abstentions do not count for quorum purposes.
2 Austria: Abstentions are no longer included in the quorum.
3 Bangladesh: No information available.
4 Belgium: Abstentions are counted as "no vote" for items that are not subject to quorum requirements. In cases where there is a quorum requirement or specifically
provided in the articles of association, abstentions are counted as valid votes in Belgium.
5 Botswana: No information available.
6 Brazil: Abstain votes are counted toward quorum, but do not impact the approval of the proposal, i.e., to be approved, the proposal must receive a certain
percentage of the valid votes (not considering the abstentious).
7 Canada: Abstain as a voting option is rare in Canada
8 Channel Island: Most companies have only for or against on the ballot.
9 Chile: Abstain votes do not appear to be counted neither for nor against an item, it appears to be discarded when establishing the approval of a resolution.
10 Columbia: For most of the Spanish markets, abstentions do not count for quorum purposes.
11 Croatia: No information available.
12 Denmark: An abstention is not counted towards the quorum. Therefore, if a large shareholder decides to abstain, this could prevent the resolution from being
passed - in practice therefore a vote against. We have, however, decided to include ABSTAIN on the ballot. Danish companies generally do not allow AGAINST votes
on director and auditor elections when voting by proxy. Because the election has a plurality voting standard, the only way of voting against is to submit alternate
candidates, which is only practical if one is actually attending the meeting. Therefore, ABSTAIN is the only VVO when expressing dissent by proxy.
13 Ecuador: For most of the Spanish markets, abstentions do not count for quorum purposes.

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ABSTAIN TREATMENT, CONT.

COUNTRY "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS "ABSTAIN" INCLUDED IN "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS
"NO VOTE" QUORUM? A VOTE AGAINST A VOTE FOR BOARD'S
BOARD'S PROPOSAL PROPOSAL

Egypt YES

El Salvador 14

Estonia X YES

Finland 15 X NO

France 16 YES

Germany X NO

Ghana 17

Gibraltar 18

Greece X YES

Hong Kong 19 NO

Hungary YES X

India X NO

Indonesia 20 X YES

Ireland X NO

Israel X

Italy 21 YES X

Jamaica 22

Japan 23 YES X

Jordan X

Kazakhstan YES X

Liechtenstein X

Lithuania X YES

Notes:
14 El Salvador: For most of the Spanish markets, abstentions do not count for quorum purposes.
15 Finland: An abstention is NOT counted towards the quorum. However, certain proposals (amendments to articles, capital increases) require the support of 2/3 of
all shares represented at the meeting. Therefore, if a large shareholder decides to abstain, this could prevent the resolution from being passed - in practice therefore a
vote against. We have, however, decided to include ABSTAIN on the ballot.
16 France: Abstain is no longer equivalent to an against. This applies from the date of the AGM approving the first financial year ending after the enactment of the law
(19 July 2019).
17 Ghana: No information available.
18 Gibraltar: No information available.
19 Hong Kong: New listing rules do not require issuers to include Abstain as a voting option.
20 Indonesia: An abstention is counted towards the quorum
21 Italy: The issue of abstentions is disputed in Italy, but most commentators consider them as votes against. As abstentions are counted towards the quorum and not
counted in the FOR, they in practice count against the proposal.
22 Jamaica: No information available.
23 Japan: An abstention is counted towards the quorum and is not counted as a FOR. Therefore, in practice count against the proposal.

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ABSTAIN TREATMENT, CONT.

COUNTRY "ABSTAIN" COUNTED "ABSTAIN" INCLUDED "ABSTAIN" COUNTED "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS
AS "NO VOTE" IN QUORUM? AS A VOTE AGAINST A VOTE FOR BOARD'S
BOARD'S PROPOSAL PROPOSAL

Luxembourg 24 X YES

Malaysia 25 X NO

Mauritius X

Mexico 26 YES

Monaco YES

Morocco 27

Netherlands X YES

New Zealand X YES

Norway YES X

Pakistan X YES

Panama X

Papua New Guinea 28

Peru 29

Philippines X YES

Poland X YES

Portugal 30 X NO

Romania 31 YES X

Russia X YES

Singapore 32 X NO

Slovakia X YES

Slovenia X YES

South Africa YES

South Korea X YES

Notes:
24 Luxembourg: Unless stated otherwise by the company bylaws, "abstain" votes are taken into account of the quorum calculation, i.e. for first-call special meetings
only. However, "abstain votes" count as "no vote". See article 67-1 (2) of Company Act.
25 Malaysia: Abstain generally does not appear on the proxy card and does not appear on the meeting results either. Our understanding is that when abstain
instruction is sent, it is usually treated the same as “do not vote” and does not get counted towards the number of votes cast.
26 Mexico: Abstain votes are discarded on the approval or refusal of a proposal.
27 Morocco: No information available.
28 Papua New Guinea: No information available.
29 Peru: For most of the Spanish markets, abstentions do not count for quorum purposes.
30 Portugal: The general meeting shall adopt resolutions by a majority of votes cast, regardless of the percentage of the share capital represented, unless otherwise
stipulated in the law or the articles of association. Abstentions shall not be counted.
31 Romania: Abstain is a valid vote, in addition to FOR and AGAINST. This means it is not counted in the FOR, so goes against them.
32 Singapore: Abstain generally does not appear on the proxy card and does not appear on the meeting results either. Our understanding is that when abstain
instruction is sent, it is usually treated the same as “do not vote” and does not get counted towards the number of votes cast.

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ABSTAIN TREATMENT, CONT.

COUNTRY "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS "ABSTAIN" INCLUDED IN "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS "ABSTAIN" COUNTED AS
"NO VOTE" QUORUM? A VOTE AGAINST A VOTE FOR BOARD'S
BOARD'S PROPOSAL PROPOSAL

Spain 33 X NO

Sri Lanka 34

Sweden 35 X YES

Switzerland YES

Taiwan X YES

Thailand 36 X YES

Turkey 37 YES X

United Kingdom 38 YES

United States 39

Uruguay 40

Venezuela 41

Vietnam 42

Virgin Isl (UK) X

Zambia 43

Zimbabwe 44

Notes:
33 Spain: Management- or -shareholder-sponsored resolutions are adopted by the absolute majority of votes cast; i.e. votes 'For' > votes 'Against'.
34 Sri Lanka: No information available.
35 Sweden: Some resolutions may require that a certain number of the shares issued are represented at the meeting, and/or that a qualified majority vote for the
resolution in order for it to pass. Abstain votes are considered present and entitled to vote at a meeting, and, as such, are included in the calculation of whether a
quorum exists. However, "Abstain" votes are not generally considered as votes cast.
36 Thailand: Thai companies sometimes require that shareholders either vote for or against all items on the agenda.
37 Turkey: Voting “against” or “for” is permitted while it is not possible to vote “abstain” in Turkish law. Only “for” votes are counted for a resolution to be accepted.
Therefore “abstain” votes will be considered as “against”. (Shareholders are still able to leave the proxy card blank and it will be counted as an abstain vote but will be
considered as a vote against the proposal as only for votes are counted for a resolution to be passed.)
38 United Kingdom: Abstain (or “Withhold”) is typically included on the ballot, but is not a vote in law and is therefore disregarded when determining whether a
resolution has passed or failed. Cannot abstain at court mtgs.
39 United States: Companies can decide how to count abstain votes, there can be defaults set by state law, but most companies have the leeway in their own charters
and bylaws how they treat abstain votes.
40 Uruguay: For most of the Spanish markets, abstentions do not count for quorum purposes.
41 Venezuela: For most of the Spanish markets, abstentions do not count for quorum purposes.
42 Vietnam: AGAINST is not valid vote option for director elections via cumulative voting. Abstain is used if not supporting a director nominee.
43 Zambia: No information available.
44 Zimbabwe: No information available.

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