Investors in the Far East Fail to Recover $1.5 Billion in Class Actions
LONDON, Nov. 20 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
- New Report From GOAL Group Highlights the Impact of Non-Participation in US
Securities Class Actions on Investors in Singapore and the Far East
A new report from GOAL Group, a leading withholding tax and class action services
specialist, shows that between 2000 and 2007 Far East institutional investors' non-
participation in US securities class actions litigation resulted in nearly $1.5 billion being left
on the table. As the issues of shareholder rights and corporate accountability rise up in the
agenda, investors in Singapore and the Far East can no longer afford to forego their right
to claim damages, especially in light of the subprime crisis. Average settlements in class
action cases sit at some $30 million but investor losses in 'subprime' cases are thought to
be 10 times higher than other cases[1].
In the absence of established mechanisms for joint actions in many Far East
legislatures, class actions in the US courts can be used by non-US shareholders to seek
redress for their losses. 12.5% of all foreign investment in US equities can be attributed to
Far East investors
Keeping track of the opportunities and processes to make a successful claim can be a
complicated and daunting task - explaining why 25% of claims are left unprocessed. The
established culture of shareholder silence may also be to blame, although this is changing
as shareholders become aware that they remain anonymous unless they choose to put
themselves forward as lead plaintiff
Stephen Everard, Managing Director, GOAL Group, comments, "Increasingly, the
prevailing view is that there is a clear duty of care for institutional investors in Singapore to
register claims in US courts on behalf of their clients, but our research shows that non-
participation is costing investors dearly.
"It is true that participating in a class action requires accurate information about the
procedural processes, and time and resources to evaluate relevant settlement provisions.
But outsourced, automated services are available on the market to process these claims
without incurring high expense, which some astute institutional investors in the Far East
are already using.
[1] NERA Consulting
SOURCE: GOAL Group
NEWS 
