A corporate action costs USD34 million to manage
Corporate actions are the lifeblood of the financial services industry. Every dividend payment, merger announcement, and stock split triggers a complex sequence of events across an interconnected ecosystem of market participants, intermediaries, and investors. While essential to market function, corporate actions also represent one of its largest sources of inefficiency and hidden cost.
For US securities alone, these inefficiencies contribute to annual processing costs of approximately $58 billion, which is around 0.05% of total US market capitalisation.
In today’s investment environment, these hidden costs directly impact investor returns, operational profitability, and market confidence. With growing regulatory scrutiny, rising investor expectations, and intensifying competitive pressure, addressing these inefficiencies is no longer optional. It is essential.
How much does one corporate action cost?
in industry costs for one US event
How much do corporate actions cost the industry every year?
in total industry costs per annum
(for all US corporate actions)
This paper explores the scale and root causes of the challenge, supported by insights from across the industry. It also highlights the opportunity ahead. By adopting real-time, standardised data across a connected ecosystem, and by creating a true golden source for corporate event information, the industry could save $15 billion. Perhaps more importantly, this would return $259 to every US investor through their pensions and investments. But none of this can be achieved in isolation. Like the events themselves, fixing corporate actions is a team sport... and success will depend on the industry working together.