- Policy update for 2026: The new guidelines reinforce the requirement for independence of the chairman of the board, raise standards in remuneration linked to ESG criteria and expand the focus on diversity in Asia.
- Active approach: In 2025, AllianzGI participated in 8,690 shareholder meetings, voted on nearly 90,000 proposals and opposed or abstained from at least one agenda item in 71% of meetings.
- Quality of the board of directors: AllianzGI voted against 21% of managers in 2025 over concerns related to excessive seniority, overboarding and lack of independence in committees.
- In Spain: AllianzGI voted against 13% of all proposals in 2025, in line with 2024, and abstained on another 3%. As in previous years, the level of opposition was significantly higher in resolutions related to remuneration and capital increases.
Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI), one of the world’s leading asset managers with €591 billion in assets under management, has published its annual analysis of its proxy voting policy at General Shareholders’ Meetings globally, reinforcing its leadership position in corporate governance and sustainable management. During 2025, the firm participated in 8,690 shareholder meetings, voted on 90,000 proposals and voted against or abstained in at least 71% of the meetings. AllianzGI voted against 21.4% of the board elections, mainly due to concerns about excessive tenure, accumulation of responsibilities and insufficient committee independence.
In Spain, AllianzGI voted against 13% of all proposals in 2025, in line with 2024, and abstained on another 3%. As in previous years, the opposition rate was significantly higher in resolutions related to remuneration and capital.
Matt Christensen, Global Head of Sustainable and Impact Investing at Allianz Global Investors, points out: «As long-term managers of our clients’ capital, we remain firmly committed to active management and strong corporate governance. While regulatory changes may reduce the number of shareholder proposals in the US in 2026, our focus on transparency, managing material ESG risks and creating long-term sustainable value remains intact. We will continue to advance the issues that matter most to our clients and adapt to the evolving environment.»
Changes to voting policy for 2026
AllianzGI annually reviews its active voting policy guidelines to adapt them to evolving corporate expectations. By 2025, the manager has implemented new rules:
- Independence of the president of the council: AllianzGI will no longer support non-independent chairmen who have previously served as president and CEO combined, reinforcing the importance of independent oversight.
- Gender diversity: From 2027, the firm expects boards to be no more than 85% composed of people of the same gender, expanding its diversity expectations in Asia.
- Remuneration of management teams: Given the growing incorporation of ESG metrics, AllianzGI is raising its quality requirements and introducing stricter criteria regarding which indicators it considers appropriate. KPIs must be aligned with the company’s long-term strategy and be materially relevant to its business model and sector. Additionally, the firm hopes that companies will avoid doubly rewarding performance in short- and long-term incentive plans. AllianzGI will vote against compensation policies that use the same KPIs for both time horizons.
Voting in 2025
Compensation Concerns
Remuneration was again one of the main areas of disagreement in 2025. In Europe, levels of opposition were especially high in Belgium (55%), the Netherlands (51%), Italy (47%) and Germany (40%). Despite improvements in disclosure, problems such as weak alignment between compensation and performance and excessive discretion in pay persisted.
In the United States, the firm opposed 77% of pay proposals, driven by concerns about increasing stock-based incentives and special hiring bonuses. AllianzGI continued to champion performance-linked equity incentive plans with stretch targets.
Shareholder proposals: regulatory changes and key issues
In Russell 3000 companies, the number of shareholder proposals fell almost 16%, partly due to regulatory adjustments and a more selective approach by proponents. AllianzGI voted on 501 shareholder proposals in the US, covering corporate governance, compensation, social issues, environmental issues and mixed proposals. The firm supported all climate-related proposals focused on improving disclosure, reporting and transparency, but rejected those aimed at restricting companies’ climate analysis or action.
The 26 resolutions linked to human rights also received support from AllianzGI, along with proposals calling for greater transparency in political spending and lobbying activities. The firm also highlighted the emergence of proposals related to artificial intelligence and has developed a dialogue framework to better understand the associated governance and sustainability risks.
Board quality and succession planning
Board composition remains a central focus of AllianzGI’s stewardship work. In 2025, the firm voted against 21% of management elections, with special concern in markets such as Germany and France (33% opposition), where problems of excessive seniority, accumulation of positions or lack of independence in committees persist. The firm also highlighted the importance of proactive succession planning for both presidents and executives.
Antje Stobbe, responsible for Stewardship and AllianzGI, states: «We encourage boards to anticipate the succession planning of both the president and their members, through a structured process that is transparently communicated to investors. At AllianzGI we attach great importance to the selection being carried out through a professional process and that the designated president has the necessary time for an adequate transition and adaptation to the position.»
Spain
Executive Compensation: In 2025, AllianzGI voted against proposals related to remuneration in 39% of cases and abstained in an additional 23%. Of the 24 resolutions on remuneration policy put to the vote, 75% were opposed, mainly due to the existence of discretion without clear limits. It only supported 12% of compensation reports, down from 29% the previous year. In 83% of the negative votes (against or abstention), one of the determining factors was the lack of transparency about the objectives set by the council and the degree of compliance with them.
Capital: In 2025, AllianzGI voted against 26% of proposals related to capital increases or issuances, an improvement of 12 percentage points compared to the previous year. This improvement stands out given that the number of capital proposals put to a vote increased by 38%. The main reason for opposition was that requests to issue equity or equity-linked instruments exceeded the thresholds set out in the AllianzGI guidelines, i.e. issues greater than 10% of outstanding capital without pre-emptive rights and greater than 33% with pre-emptive rights.
Advisors: Voting on resolutions related to management teams increased compared to the previous year (19% in 2025 compared to 9% in 2024). In 48% of the cases, one of the factors was the insufficient level of independence of the board, both in companies with widely distributed capital and in smaller listed companies. Another relevant reason was the lack of independence of the Audit Committee.