Omni Market Tide to Hold Australia’s First Virtual AGM with Real-Time Voting Through OmniLOOP

24^th May, 2016

On Monday 30^th May, corporate history will be made when Omni Market Tide (ASX: OMT) hosts Australia’s first ever virtual AGM with real-time voting, using the OmniLOOP mobile app.

OmniLOOP, designed by OMT, is Australasia’s only multi-company app for investors, allowing them to receive company information, stream AGMs, ask a question and participate in live voting from their mobile phone.  OMT’s AGM on Monday will be the first time shareholders will use OmniLOOP to participate in an AGM.

People interested in watching this historic event can download the OmniLOOP app now for free from the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. The AGM will be available to stream live at 10am on Monday 30^th May.

Megan Boston, Managing Director Omni Market Tide said, “This is not only a fantastic achievement, but a watershed moment in corporate Australia which OMT shareholders have a chance to be a part of. OmniLOOP is positioned to set a new best practice benchmark in investor relations for listed companies, and we believe it will revolutionise company meetings and shareholder engagement.

“It’s often said that AGMs are symbolic of a how we used to do things – paper based, backward in focus, physical in their organisation and process. This could be the catalyst that finally takes the AGM, and shareholder engagement from the old model, to the way of the future.”

OmniLOOP offers investors both convenience and greater transparency in how their investment is performing, making information more accessible and removing barriers to event participation. It features a share price feed and allows shareholders to view key company dates and sync them with their phone’s calendar. Shareholders will also be able to view, save and share announcements in an easy to read format.

At the same time, OmniLOOP can save listed companies time and money while increasing shareholder engagement and providing better governance outcomes.

Currently ASX listed companies are spending $200 million on share registry services, $120 million on AGM meetings and $350 million on shareholder engagement. AGM costs alone range from $250,000—$1,000,000 for ASX200 companies. However, despite this investment, shareholder attendance is decreasing year by year. Only 5% of the top 200 companies are drawing more than 500 shareholders to their AGM.

There is a real opportunity now to harness technology and turn the tables by giving investors what they want – mobility, convenience and transparency. Smartphone and tablet technology are here to stay and companies that don’t adapt to the digital paradigm and interact with shareholders through their preferred channel risk fading away into the obsolete.

Presently, Australia lags behind other developed markets that have already embraced this technology. Virtual meetings have been common in the United States since 2009 and has been widely attributed with an increase in direct voting and New Zealand has followed suit recently. With OmniLOOP, OMT aims to make this happen in Australia, starting with its own AGM.

To download OmniLOOP now for free, visit the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store.