Corporate Governance Code in Spain. New version, February 2015
- On 24 February 2015 the regulatory body of the Spanish Stock Market (Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores, CNMV) published the new Unified Code on Good Corporate Governance for listed companies which substitutes the previous version from 2006, partly amended in 2013.
- The CNMV had the support and assistance from the Committee of Experts on corporate governance created by agreement of the Council of Ministers on 10 May 2013 that also worked in drafting the Law 31/2014, published on 4 December 2014 and which amended the Companies Act in matters of corporate governance.
- The new Good Corporate Governance Code excludes some recommendations of the previous Code as they have already been incorporated in a binding regulation. It only includes matters subject to the principle of "comply or explain".
- One of the fundamental changes in this Good Corporate Governance Code is the inclusion of recommendations related to the policy of corporate social responsibility, a matter that in recent years has aroused particular interest and awareness within and beyond our borders. This is why, for the first time, it is recommended that companies examine the impact their activity has on society and the minimum recommended content of the corporate social responsibility policy is established. Moreover, it is recommended that the company informs (whether in its management report or in a separate document) about matters related to corporate social responsibility.