A time to speak and time to remain silent

Transparency has become a vastly over-used word in the City but there can be no doubt that the sheer volume of information and data now available at the touch of a button has helped concentrate the minds of everyone in the financial world on just how open and helpful they can be to those who follow and comment upon them.

How open should a company be? Most good communicators would argue for maximum openness and disclosure of information. However, the rules and regulations make true openness both difficult and dangerous. In addition, there is a danger of creating an impression of naivety and of satiating the audience’s appetite for more ‘news’ about a company.