South Korea’s SK Group has decided to hold this year’s regular shareholders’ meetings for its major affiliates on different days to make it easier for shareholders to exercise their voting rights, another shareholder-friendly policy by SK after its decision to adopt an electronic voting system.

SK Holdings Co., the group’s holding entity, said Wednesday that its affiliates including SK Innovation Co., SK Telecom Co. and SK Hynix Inc. will hold their shareholders’ meetings separately in March, and exact schedule will be announced later.

The decision came after Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Choi Jong-ku pointed out last month that about 45 percent or 924 listed firms held shareholders’ meetings on the same day on March 24 in 2017, and encouraged companies to convene their meetings on different days. SK will become the first conglomerate to act on Choi’s request, and it remains to be seen whether other major firms would follow suit.

Last month, SK Holdings also decided to adopt an electronic voting system to allow shareholders to cast a vote without having to physically attend the meeting.

An official from SK Holdings said that the movement is part of its efforts to achieve the goal to become a global investment-specialized holding firm by meeting the need of the society and shareholders, and it will continue to focus on shareholder-friendly policies.

By Kang Doo-soon and Choi Mira

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