- Companies listed on the regulated market of the Bourse and incorporated under the Luxembourgish law will now have to disclose their corporate social responsibility (CSR) policy.
- The revised Decalogue is now one of the most advanced corporate governance documents in terms of mandatory CSR-commitment of listed companies.
In parallel to the launch of the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX) in September 2016, the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) launched a working group to revise its Corporate Governance Principles. “After a year of intense work, we are proposing a document that encourages listed Luxembourgish companies to abide by the revised rules. The most significant change is the new Principle 9 that introduces mandatory disclosure of the companies’ CSR commitment”, explains Pierre Margue, Chairman of the working group and Vice-President Legal Services Corporate and Finance at SES. By introducing its new CSR principle in its X Principles, the stock exchange stressed its engagement towards promoting sustainable growth of the global economy.
The working group was composed of the representatives of the Luxembourgish companies listed on the exchange thus showing the collective engagement and agreement of all concerned parties to reach the common goal of sustainable development. “It was very encouraging to see unanimity on a topic of such importance for the entire planet”, adds Maurice Bauer, Secretary General of the LuxSE.
The ninth principle forces companies to define their policy on CSR aspects. It specifies the measures for the implementation of the policy and how to give them adequate publicity. Companies have to integrate CSR aspects into their long-term value creation strategy and will have to describe how the CSR approach contributes to this goal. They will present the CSR-related information in a report that assesses the sustainability of the activities and provides clear and transparent non-financial information in support. Boards of directors will have to regularly address and review the non-financial risks of the companies, including social and environmental risks.
In 2006, we issued the first edition of “The X Principles of Corporate Governance of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange”. The rules apply to all companies listed on the regulated market and incorporated under the Luxembourgish law. For all other companies, the X Principles are applicable on a voluntary basis.