Corporate governance and issues of disclosure and transparency are the hot topics on Wall Street these days.
Now, in the wake of some rule changes by the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ, if I interview an analyst by phone that will qualify as a “public appearance”. What are the implications for journalists in Canada? Well, for one thing, I got a note yesterday from the PR woman at Merrill Lynch Canada letting me know that I can no longer phone up some of the economists and analysts I would routinely contact at that banks Toronto or New York office without first going through a PR woman and listening to a standard spiel about disclosure.
And while none of my sources have done this to me yet, there's a chance the analyst could be forced to disclose what s/he said in that interview as soon as it's over, even before I publish the contents of the interview!
Here's a story on this;
Banks Eye Analyst Disclosure: Big Board Expands 'Public Appearance' Guide
The NYSE and the NASD have added print media interviews to existing rules on disclosure of TV appearances by analysts. Banks must maintain records of interviews whether they're published or not.