IR Monitor – 23 March 2020

As the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak spreads across the globe, this week we look at the varying ways markets, investors, creditors and corporates might respond to the uncertainty. We open by looking at the FCA’s decision to suspend results for at least two weeks, and follow up with an assessment of the not-unprecedented suggestion of shutting markets altogether, a potential solution with a whole host of pitfalls. Following this, we assess the hit investors will take after multiple companies have announced that they will be cutting their dividends in the rush to conserve cash. Next, we discuss the challenges posed by the outbreak for companies, in assessing how best to disclose and assess Covid-19-related gains and losses, and take a look at how companies should respond to short-sellers in the present environment. Finally, we report on how the crisis posed by the outbreak will force corporates to put their money where their mouths are, having talked up their ‘stakeholder capitalism’ credentials over the past few years.