The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) has long been a leading proponent for the highest standards of corporate governance and ethical behaviour. Its listing standards have included governance rules for approximately 150 years. It was the NYSE that first required companies to issue regular financial statements, as well as to provide quarterly earnings announcements and conduct independent audits of financial statements, all of which were included as part of the NYSE’s listing standards before any of the federal securities legislation coming out of the Great Depression. The leadership role of the NYSE on governance matters continued during the middle of the 20th century, when the NYSE pioneered such developments as required proxy statement distribution, a minimum number of outside directors, and audit committees made up entirely of independent directors. To learn more about the NYSE and governance, read the Report of the New York Stock Exchange Commission on Corporate Governance (September 23, 2010). The report contains a summary of significant corporate governance developments since 2000 (pages 10-23).
