The Emerging Role of Blockchain in Corporate Governance



Yüklə 314 Kb.
tarix29.03.2023
ölçüsü314 Kb.
#90911
BlockchainPP1213 (1)

The Emerging Role of Blockchain in Corporate Governance

  • Emily V. Burton
  • Corporate Counseling and Litigation Group
  • December 15, 2017

Problems To Be Solved: Corporate Governance

  • Corporations’ capital structures must be indisputably delineated
  • The requirements for corporate actions involving the capital structure or governing documents are stringent
  • Even mere foot-faults in corporate governance changes can result in ambiguity or corporate acts unexpectedly discovered to be voidable or void

Problems To Be Solved: Numerous Stockholders

  • Complexity in recording stock transfers
  • Difficulty in verifying stockholding
  • Burden surrounding exercise of the stockholder franchise

Problems To Be Solved: Real World Example

  • Dole Food Company, Inc. Class Action Settlement
  • 36,793,758 shares in the class
  • Facially valid claims were submitted for 49,164,415 shares
  • 33% more Dole common stock than existed

How can Blockchain Help? Corporate Governance

  • Smart contracts can make corporate formalities self-enforcing
  • Distributed ledgers eliminate potential record disputes
  • Blockchain provides an immutable record of past compliance with corporate formalities

How can Blockchain Help? Numerous Stockholders

  • Lowered barriers to direct record stockholding
  • Lowered barriers to individual stockholder voting
  • Lowered transaction costs for dividend distribution
  • Automated, confidential access to key documents or information
  • Realtime voting power measurements
  • Transparency traceability, and pseudonymity of blockchain streamlines class or group measurement

Blockchain in Delaware

  • Why does Delaware matter?
  • Delaware is the corporate capital of the world
  • Only jurisdiction explicitly embracing distributed ledger technology for corporate governance to date

Blockchain in Delaware: Changes in the Law

  • DGCL Sections 219 and 224 enable Delaware Corporations to implement and rely on blockchain or distributed ledger stock ledgers for corporate governance and records
  • DGCL Sections 151, 202, and 364 permit notices to be distributed through blockchain

Blockchain in Delaware: Enabling Technology

  • Secretary of State developing a distributed ledger network with private vender symbiont
  • Allows automation of Secretary of State functions, including:
  • Allows smart contracts to interact directly with the Secretary of State’s Office

Possible Future Roles for Blockchain in Corporate Governance

  • Immutable storage and automated filing and amendment of governing documents
  • Automated distributions of disclosures and other stockholder communications
  • Lower costs for proxy materials for individual stockholders or insurgent ballots
  • Smart contract enforced compliance with statutory requirements for corporate governance
  • Self-enforcing stockholders’ agreements
  • Digital joinders to stockholders’ agreements
  • Capital table management in real time
  • Self-enforcing preferred stock voting and approval rights
  • Automatic quorum calculations
  • Facilitation of action by stockholder written consent
  • Automated conversion of convertible stock and securities
  • Individual share tracing
  • White list/black list transfer restrictions
  • Real-time stockholder voting modeling or waterfall calculation
  • End to end confirmation of consent delivery
  • Proxy authorization verification
  • Fluid tender/exchange offers
  • Improved franchise tax calculations

Yüklə 314 Kb.

Dostları ilə paylaş:




Verilənlər bazası müəlliflik hüququ ilə müdafiə olunur ©azkurs.org 2024
rəhbərliyinə müraciət

gir | qeydiyyatdan keç
    Ana səhifə


yükləyin