C O R P O R A T E G O V E R N A N C E
(D) UNITHOLDER RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Principle 14:
Unitholder Rights
Principle 15:
Communication with Unitholders
Principle 16:
Conduct Of Unitholder Meetings
The Manager has in place a dedicated team performing the investor relations function and has in place an Investor Relations Policy
which sets out the principles and practices that the Manager applies in order to provide Unitholders and prospective investors of
A-REIT with the information necessary to make well-informed investment decisions and to ensure a level playing field.
The Listing Rules of the SGX-ST require that a listed entity discloses to the market matters that could or might be expected to
have a material effect on the price of the entity’s securities. The Manager upholds a strong culture of continuous disclosure and
transparent communication with Unitholders and the investing community. The Manager’s disclosure policy requires timely and
full disclosure of all material information relating to A-REIT by way of public releases or announcements through the SGX-ST via
SGXNET at first instance and then including the release on A-REIT’s website at
.
The Manager also conducts regular half-yearly briefings for analysts and media representatives, which will generally coincide with
the release of A-REIT’s results. During these briefings, the Manager will review A-REIT’s most recent performance as well as discuss
the business outlook for A-REIT. In line with the Manager’s objective of transparent communication, briefing materials are released
to the SGX-ST and also made available on A-REIT’s website.
In addition the Board has established the ORMC which is also responsible for reviewing and evaluating the adequacy of the
effectiveness of the Group’s disclosure controls and procedures so as to ensure that accurate and complete information regarding
the operations, financial performance and other material information of A-REIT that are required to be disclosed, are recorded,
processed, summarised and reported to Unitholders and the investment community in a timely manner and in compliance with the
requirements of all applicable laws.
During the year under review, the Manager also met or teleconferenced with institutional investors in Singapore, Hong Kong,
Europe, USA and Australia. In addition, the Manager pursues opportunities to educate and keep retail investors informed of the
REIT industry through seminars organised by the SGX-ST or other public associations. The annual Unitholders’ meeting was also
held for the Manager to engage with the investors, particularly retail investors, allowing them direct access to the Manager to
obtain responses to any queries which the investors might have.
Unitholders are informed of meetings through notices accompanied by annual reports or circulars sent to them. Unitholders
are invited at such meetings to put forth any questions they may have on the motions to be debated and decided upon. If any
Unitholder is unable to attend, he/she is allowed to appoint up to two proxies to vote on his/her behalf at the meeting through
proxy forms sent in advance. Members of the Board of Directors together with the AC and the auditors will be in attendance at
these meetings to address questions from Unitholders.
Unitholders are accorded the opportunity to raise relevant questions and to communicate their views at Unitholders’ meetings.
At the Unitholders’ meetings, each matter is proposed as a separate resolution. To ensure transparency, the Manager conducts
electronic poll voting for the Unitholders/proxies present at the meeting for all resolutions proposed at the Unitholders’ meetings.
All votes cast for or against and their respective percentages will be displayed “live” immediately at the meeting after the conduct
of each poll. The total number of votes cast for or against the resolutions and the respective percentages are also announced in a
timely manner after the meeting via SGXNet.
The Company Secretary prepares the minutes of the Unitholders’ meetings incorporating substantial comments or queries from
the Unitholders together with the responses of the Board and Management. The minutes are available to Unitholders upon
their request.
ASCENDAS REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST ANNUAL REPORT 2014/15
