AST Launches Issuer Central, Providing Corporations with Unprecedented Insights About Their Shareholders

First industry platform with registered and street securities ownership information available together, providing a comprehensive view of ownership

Brian J. Longe, President & CEO of AST (Photo: Business Wire)

NEW YORK--()--AST, a leading tech-enabled professional services firm, today announces the launch of Issuer Central™, an enterprise solution with a component-based platform architecture that will bring together many of the core services corporate securities issuers require in one secure, centralized platform – an industry first. Issuer Central will transform the way corporate issuers understand their ownership by providing unprecedented insights and fostering greater collaboration among C-suite teams.

Issuer Central is a one-of-a-kind platform that will present multiple AST services – including Ownership Intelligence, Registry Services, and Proxy – as a comprehensive offering for senior management through a single dashboard. CEOs, CFOs, corporate secretaries, treasurers, investor relations teams and human resources professionals will all have access to the same rich data and can customize their dashboard view based on their unique needs.

“AST is a leader in supporting the issuers of corporate securities with a strategic mix of transformative technology and expert advisory,” says Brian J. Longe, President & CEO of AST. “With Issuer Central, we are providing intelligence into investor trends and characteristics, thereby unlocking the value of ownership data. Our platform has the power to strengthen businesses, create efficiencies by eliminating the silos under which C-suite teams have historically operated. ”

Breaking New Ground on Ownership Intelligence

Issuer Central launches with the most comprehensive ownership data set currently available, providing companies with actionable intelligence about their shareholders. By leveraging proprietary data sets developed over decades by AST and its D.F. King & Co. subsidiary, the platform normalizes and integrates registered and street ownership information in one interface – which has never before been possible.

The new platform pairs seamlessly with AST’s existing Ownership Intelligence service and also allows users to customize their view of share ownership data according to their needs. Key functions include:

  • Showing issuers changes and trends in who owns, controls, buys and sells their shares;
  • Monitoring activist shareholders and potential hostile takeovers;
  • Analyzing a share’s competitive value-drivers through peer investor analysis;
  • Understanding potential investor ownership risk and opportunities ahead of corporate actions;
  • Reporting to increase awareness of proxy agency influence upon institutional investors.

“AST is uniquely positioned to develop this solution based on its many longstanding and cross-functional relationships with the issuers of corporate securities,” said Lou Cordone, SVP, AST Ownership Intelligence. “We know what an issuer wants and needs from ownership information and how that data can help drive action.”

An Integrated Vision

Throughout 2018, additional services, capabilities and data sets will be offered through Issuer Central, allowing for further data integration and engendering a whole new level of knowledge-sharing and teamwork within organizations.

Registry Services: AST’s Registry Services clients will have on-demand access to share registry and data intelligence. It will also create efficiencies by allowing for faster and more customizable configuration of reporting and a consolidated view of information.

Proxy: Powered by blockchain technology, this service will provide near real-time vote tabulation and reporting. The new interface presents issuers with greater access and transparency to campaign setup, status and results with user configurable reports. The solution supports AST’s current phone, IVR and proxy card voting options as well as a redesigned mobile-friendly shareholder voting portal. All sources are captured on the blockchain to ensure the data is accurate, immutable and secure.

About AST

AST was originally founded as a transfer agent over 45 years ago. Through organic growth and strategic acquisitions, AST has pioneered a new model of integrated services in the industry. AST affiliates include AST Trust Company (Canada), D.F. King & Co, Inc. and Donlin, Recano & Company, Inc.

Today, AST offers a full scope of services that include registry services, corporate proxy solicitation and advisory solutions, employee plan services, information agent, mutual fund proxy solicitation, shareholder identification, asset recovery and investment management offerings. For more information, please visit www.astfinancial.com.

Contacts

AST
Sara Walsh, 212-493-6945
swalsh@astfinancial.com
or
Intermarket Communications
Ben Sheng, 212-754-5467
bsheng@intermarket.com

Contacts

AST
Sara Walsh, 212-493-6945
swalsh@astfinancial.com
or
Intermarket Communications
Ben Sheng, 212-754-5467
bsheng@intermarket.com